DRILL ROD AND METHOD FOR RETROFITTING A KELLY BAR ARRANGEMENT

Abstract

The invention relates to a drill rod for transferring a torque comprising an elongate rod base body, along which runs at least one base line for a fluid and/or electric current and/or data, an upper suspension device for suspending the drill rod from a support element, a rotary bearing, which is arranged between the suspension device and the rod base body, wherein the rod base body is mounted rotatably relative to the suspension device about a rod longitudinal axis, and a rotary feedthrough, through which a line connection is formed between at least one feed line, which is fixed relative to the support element, and the at least one base line of the rotatably-mounted rod base body. The invention is characterized here in that the rotary bearing is arranged axially distanced from the rotary feedthrough, and in that the rotary bearing comprises an axial bearing which is arranged above or below the rotary feedthrough. The invention furthermore relates to a drilling apparatus comprising such a drill rod and to a method for retrofitting an existing Kelly bar arrangement.

Claims

1-15. (canceled)

16. A drill rod for transferring a torque comprising an elongate rod base body, along which runs at least one base line for a fluid and/or electric current and/or data, an upper suspension device for suspending the drill rod from a support element, a rotary bearing, which is arranged between the suspension device and the rod base body, wherein the rod base body is mounted rotatably relative to the suspension device about a rod longitudinal axis, and a rotary feedthrough, through which a line connection is formed between at least one feed line, which is fixed relative to the support element, and the at least one base line of the rotatably-mounted rod base body, wherein the rotary bearing comprises an axial bearing which is arranged above or below the rotary feedthrough, wherein the rotary feedthrough and the rotary bearing, which comprises the axial bearing, are spatially and functionally separate, the rotary bearing is arranged axially distanced from the rotary feedthrough, the rotary feedthrough comprises a sleeve-shaped outer part, which is connected to the rod base body torque proof, and an inner part, which is arranged within the outer part and is connected to the suspension device torque proof, and the inner part of the rotary feedthrough is arranged on a spike-like portion of the suspension device, wherein the spike-like portion of the suspension device extends downwardly through the rotary bearing, which is configured in annular shape.

17. The drill rod according to claim 16, wherein the rod base body is tubular with a center cavity, and the at least one base line runs within the tubular rod base body.

18. The drill rod according to claim 17, wherein the at least one base line opens out into a connection plate, which is arranged on an upper region of the rod base body.

19. The drill rod according to claim 18, wherein a connection device is provided, by means of which the connection plate is connected to the sleeve-shaped outer part of the rotary feedthrough, wherein a line connection between the base line in the rod base body and the feed line is formed on the support element.

20. The drill rod according to claim 19, wherein the connection device comprises a basket-like insert with at least one connection line.

21. The drill rod according to claim 20, wherein the basket-like insert comprises at least one form-fit element, by means of which a torque proof connection is formed between the connection plate and/or the sleeve-shaped outer part of the rotary feedthrough.

22. The drill rod according to claim 16, wherein axially directed stop strips for torque transfer run on an outer side of the rod base body.

23. A drill rod arrangement having a drill rod according to claim 16, wherein at least one radially outer drill rod pipe is also provided, wherein, to form a telescopic Kelly bar arrangement, the drill rod is mounted torque proof, but axially displaceably in the at least one outer drill rod pipe.

24. The drill rod arrangement according to claim 23, wherein a plurality of outer drill rod pipes is provided.

25. The drill rod arrangement according to claim 23,wherein the support element is a torsionally rigid support rope.

26. A drilling apparatus having at least one drill rod according to claim 16, wherein a drilling tool with a line connection is attached releasably on the drill rod.

27. A method for retrofitting a Kelly bar arrangement, wherein an inner Kelly bar of an existing Kelly bar arrangement is replaced by a drill rod according to claim 16.

28. The method according to claim 27, wherein with a multiple Kelly bar arrangement with an inner Kelly bar, at least one intermediate Kelly pipe and an outer Kelly pipe, the inner Kelly bar or the inner Kelly bar and at least one intermediate Kelly pipe is replaced by the drill rod.

Description

[0025] The invention will be further described hereinafter on the basis of preferred exemplary embodiments shown in the drawings, in which:

[0026] FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a drill rod according to the invention;

[0027] FIG. 2 shows a cross-sectional view of the drill rod of FIG. 1;

[0028] FIG. 3 shows a perspective view of a conventional inner Kelly bar;

[0029] FIG. 4 shows a cross-sectional view of the conventional inner Kelly bar of FIG. 3;

[0030] FIG. 5 shows a partly sectional and shorten illustration of a multiple Kelly bar arrangement with a drill rod according to the invention;

[0031] FIG. 6 shows a cross-sectional view of an upper region of a drill rod according to the invention;

[0032] FIG. 7 shows a perspective detailed view of parts of the upper region of a drill rod according to the invention;

[0033] FIG. 8 shows a cross-sectional view of a lower region of the multiple Kelly bar arrangement of FIG. 5; and

[0034] FIG. 9 shows a perspective view of a drilling apparatus according to the invention.

[0035] An exemplary embodiment of a drill rod 10 according to the invention is illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2. The drill rod 10 comprises an elongate rod-shaped base body 12, which is designed tubular with a center cavity 13. Stop strips 14 running in the longitudinal direction are mounted on the outer side of the rod base body 12 for torque transfer in accordance with a functionality of an inner Kelly bar.

[0036] At an upper end portion of the drill rod 10, a suspension device 20 shown only in part is provided, while a tool connection device 25 is provided on a lower end portion. The workpiece connection device 25 is provided with a square for a so-called Kelly box on a tool. In the region of the suspension device 20, a connection device 60 for a base line 30 is arranged within a tubular housing 27 and runs longitudinally along the center cavity 13 from the suspension device 20 to the tool connection device 25 and is supported via mounts 15. The connection device 60 will be described in greater detail hereinafter.

[0037] A comparison with a conventional inner Kelly bar 1, which is shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, reveals similarities and differences between this known prior art and the drill rod 10 according to the invention according to FIGS. 1 and 2. In a known inner Kelly bar 1 a rod-shaped base body 2 is likewise provided with outer strip-shaped stops 7 for a torque transfer. The inner Kelly bar 1 is likewise provided here with a suspension portion 4 at a upper end and a tool connection portion 5 at a lower end. The base body 2 of the inner Kelly bar 1 may furthermore likewise be designed tubular with a cavity 3, which in the case of a conventional inner Kelly bar 1 serves for reducing weight and otherwise has no function. Consequently, an existing inner Kelly bar 1 can be relatively easily retrofitted to a drill rod 10 according to the invention by replacing the end portions and laying one or more base lines 30 in the base body.

[0038] A Kelly bar arrangement 100 according to the invention with an inner drill rod 10 according to the invention, thus as described in conjunction with FIGS. 1 and 2, is illustrated in FIG. 5. Besides the drill rod 10 as inner Kelly bar, a first drill rod pipe 112, which forms an intermediate Kelly pipe, and an outer second drill rod pipe 114, which serves as an outer Kelly pipe, are provided. As is usual in the case of Kelly bars, the inner drill rod 10 and the second drill rod pipe 114 as well as the intermediate first drill rod pipe 112 can be moved axially to one another, so that on the whole a telescopic Kelly bar arrangement 100 is formed. A torque transfer between the individual Kelly bar elements can be provided here in basically known manner via inner and outer stop strips, wherein locking pockets for an axial locking can also be provided.

[0039] A collar-shaped stop ring 116 is mounted on the outer second drill rod pipe 114 and serves to put the Kelly bar arrangement 100 on an upper side of a rotary drive of a drilling apparatus. Furthermore, damping elements 28 made of a rubber material can be provided in a lower region in a manner known in principle, in order to cushion axial impacts between the inner drill rod 10 and the outer drill rod pipes 112 and 114.

[0040] A plurality of base lines 30 runs within the center cavity 13 of the tubular rod base body 12 of the drill rod 10. These open out in their lower region into radially directed line connections 28 at the lower tool connection device 25. Here, a ground processing tool, in particular a drilling tool, can be mounted torque proof via a Kelly connection, known in principle. Since the connected tool is connected torque proof, a corresponding line connection to the line connection 26 fixed relative hereto can be carried out relatively easily.

[0041] In its upper region, the base lines 30 open out into a connection device 60 with connection lines 68 running therein. The connection device 60 will be described in greater detail hereinafter in conjunction with FIG. 7.

[0042] At the upper end region of the connection device 60, there is arranged a rotary feedthrough 40, which has a pot-shaped or sleeve-shaped outer part 42. The outer part 42 is connected torque proof to the connection device 60 and the rod base body 12. Furthermore, the rotary feedthrough 40 comprises an inner part 44, which protrudes upwardly from the outer part 42 and is rotatable relative hereto. Intermediate lines 36 are connected to the inner part 44 and run upwardly through the annular rotary bearing 50 as far as a pin-shaped connection element 21, on which there are provided radially directed feed connections 22 for at least one supply line 82. The structure of the suspension device 20 with the suspension element 21 and the rotary bearing 50 will be explained further hereinafter in conjunction with FIG. 6.

[0043] According to FIG. 6, an upper region of the suspension device 20 is shown in cross section. The pin-shaped suspension element 21 has a transversely directed bolt receptacle 23 for a locking bolt, by means of which the suspension element 21 can be connected to a rope eye, not shown, of a support rope. The pin-shaped suspension element 21 is thus arranged in a fixed manner on a support element in the rotary direction about a longitudinal axis. In the shown exemplary embodiment, a fluid can be fed via the feed connection 22 via feed lines, which likewise are fixed, and can thus be conducted downward in the direction of the rotary feedthrough 40 via the intermediate lines 36.

[0044] At a lower end of the pin-shaped suspension element 21, there is formed a region of enlarged diameter, which forms a sleeve-like bearing housing 54 of the rotary bearing 50. Within the bearing housing 54, there is arranged an axial bearing 52, which in the shown exemplary embodiment is formed by three roller bearings. A tubular inner part 56 is mounted rotatably in the bearing housing 54 via the axial bearing 52. The bearing inner part 56 is thus mounted on the spike-like suspension element 21 and the internal intermediate lines 36 so as to be rotatable relative to the bearing housing 54.

[0045] The lower region of the tubular bearing inner part 56 is provided with a fastening portion 58, on which the rod base body 12 is mounted torque proof directly or via an intermediate element. In this way, a force flow can be established from the locking bolt via the suspension element 21 via the axial bearing 52 to the bearing inner part 56 rotatable hereto with the rod base body 12 fixedly mounted thereon.

[0046] A fluid course can be established from the feed connection 22 through the intermediate line 36 to the rod base body 12. It should be noted here on it that the intermediate lines 36 and the feed connections 22 are not used solely for a feed of a fluid from top to bottom to a tool, but can also be used correspondingly for the feed or return of fluid from the tool back upwardly to a support apparatus, for example if a hydraulic liquid is used as fluid.

[0047] The connection device 60 is arranged in the rod base body 12 and will be explained in greater detail hereinafter in accordance with the illustration as per FIG. 7. The connection device 60 comprises, in particular, a basket-like insert 62 with a base 63 and longitudinal struts 64 extending therefrom in the longitudinal direction, which are stabilised at their upper end with a ring 65. The base lines 30 in the rod-shaped base body 12 open out into a connection plate 18, which is likewise arranged fixedly in the rod base body 12 and has an annular plug receptacle 19. A lower region of the base 63 of the basket-like insert 62 with lower connections 67 can be inserted axially in matching fashion into said receptacle, wherein a line connection is established between the base lines 30 and the intermediate lines 68 in the connection device 60. The upper ends of the connection lines 68 are connected fixedly to the underside of the sleeve- or pot-shaped outer part 42 of the rotary feedthrough 40. A line connection to the inner part 44 is produced within the rotary feedthrough 40, which inner part is rotatable relative to the sleeve-shaped outer part 42. The rotary feedthrough 40 can be configured to produce a line connection for a fluid, electrical current and/or data. The outer part 42 of the rotary feedthrough 40 is housed fixedly in the basket-like insert 62 via a closure ring 69, wherein the inner part 44 of smaller diameter protrudes through the passage of greater diameter in the closure ring 69. The above-described intermediate lines 36 can be connected to the upper side of the inner part 44 from the suspension element 21.

[0048] The connection device 60 is introduced into the rod-shaped base body 12 by being pushed axially into the latter, wherein a connection torque proof to the rod base body 12 is established via form-fit elements 66 on the base 63, which are configured as radial recesses. For this purpose, corresponding radial protrusions are provided on the rod base body 12, but these are not shown in the drawings.

[0049] In the cross-sectional view according to FIG. 8, a lower end of a drill rod 10 according to the invention with a longitudinal axis 16 in a Kelly bar arrangement 100 is shown. The base lines 30 run within the bar base body 12 and in particular in the center cavity 13, until they open out into radially directed line connections 26 in the region of the tool connection device 25. Here, a left-hand line connection 26a is shown as a fluid connection, while the right-hand line connection 26b is configured as a connection for electric current or a data line. A fluid flow is shown schematically by a dashed line, while a force flow is indicated by an arrow line.

[0050] In the shown exemplary embodiment, annular damping elements 28 made of rubber are arranged at the lower end region of the drill rod 10 and are supported on the one hand towards the bottom in relation to the tool connection device 25 and towards the top in relation to an attachment ring 29. A lower end of the first drill rod pipe 112 and of the second drill rod pipe 114 of the Kelly bar arrangement 100 lie on the attachment ring 29.

[0051] According to FIG. 9, a drilling apparatus 70 with a support apparatus 71 according to the invention is shown. The support apparatus 71 comprises an upper structure 72, which is mounted rotatably on a lower structure 73, which comprises a crawler chassis.

[0052] On the upper structure 72 there is mounted a substantially vertically directed mast 74, along which a drilling apparatus slide 75 with a rotary drive 76 is mounted displaceably. A Kelly bar arrangement 100 according to the invention is suspended via a support element 80 formed as a support rope and protrudes downwardly through the annular rotary drive 76. A drilling tool, not shown, for example a drilling bucket, can be mounted at a lower end of the Kelly bar arrangement 100 to a tool connection device 25. For example, hydraulic fluid can be feed from the support apparatus 71 via the suspension device 20 of the Kelly bar arrangement 100 and thus to a suspended drilling tool via at least one feed line 82.