Rotary drive for applying rotary torque to a shaft to be axially vibrated

Abstract

A drive assembly suitable for a spindle connection to a drill string or other shaft, the assembly comprising or including a drive shaft, a shuttle rotatable under the action of the drive shaft but being slidable relative thereto, the shuttle carrying magnets, a containment assembly to constrain the shuttle to a shuttle axis, the containment assembly carrying magnets to co-act with those of the shuttle as the shuttle is rotated by the drive shaft thereby to cause the shuttling of the shuttle, a spindle not forming part of the shuttle arrangement to receive vibration from said containment assembly and/or said shuttle (e.g.; through a cushion of liquid), a carriage assembly on part of the spindle slidable on an axis coincident with and/or parallel to the spindle's rotational axis, and a drive carried by the carriage assembly to rotate the spindle or to rotate both the spindle and part of the carriage assembly.

1 . A rotary drive assembly of or for a shaft, the assembly comprising or including
 a spindle directly or indirectly connected or connectable to the shaft to be rotated,   vibrational apparatus, or an adaptation to connect to vibrational apparatus, so as, in use, to impart vibration to the spindle,   an array of guides, pins about the spindle in a fixed relationship with the spindle,   a slideable guide follower, sleeve on each of said pins, each with a sliding axis on its pin parallel to the rotational axis of the spindle,   a gear mounted directly or indirectly on said sleeve and adapted to slide therewith, and   a geared drive for the sleeve carried gear,   
     the arrangement being such that the geared drive can rotate the spindle by the action of the driven gear acting through the sleeves on the pins yet such that the geared drive, the driven gear and the sleeves are less subject to axial vibration than is the spindle. 
   
   
       2 . The assembly of  claim 1  wherein the adaptation to connect to vibrational apparatus is for a shuttle including vibrational head to which such an adaptation is to be connected or is connected, the output vibrationally not being directly from the shuttle, but from some structure relative to which the shuttle shuttles. 
   
   
       3 . The assembly of  claim 2  wherein the shuttle axis is rectilinear and is aligned with the axial direction, ie; the rotational axis of the spindle and/or the rotational axis of the shaft. 
   
   
       4 . The assembly of  claim 1  said spindle is to be aligned axially with the shaft. 
   
   
       5 . The assembly of  claim 2  wherein said shuttle is driven to shuttle as a result of both (i) an input of a rotational drive on the shuttle and (ii) magnetic interactions capable of causing a shuttling. 
   
   
       6 . The assembly of  claim 2  wherein said shuttle imparts vibration via a fluid. 
   
   
       7 . The assembly of  claim 1  wherein said adaptation is a structure relative to which the spindle and its pins can rotate, such rotation being about the spindle axis which is aligned with an axial pathway for vibrational feed into the spindle from said adaptation. 
   
   
       8 . The assembly of  claim 1  wherein the driven gear is mounted on a sleeve encompassing structure, said sleeve encompassing structure carrying the mounted gear, such gearing mounting being adapted to rotate coaxially about the spindle axis as part of a carriage that includes said sleeves. 
   
   
       9 . The assembly of  claim 1  wherein the vibrational apparatus, or adaptation to connect to the vibrational apparatus, is a thrust bearing mounted relative to the spindle. 
   
   
       10 . The assembly of  claim 1  wherein the shaft is a drill string. 
   
   
       11 . A rotary drive assembly of or for a drill string, the assembly including
 a spindle directly or indirectly connected or connectable to the drill string to be rotated,   vibrational apparatus, or adaptation to connect to vibrational apparatus, so as, in use, to impart vibration to the spindle,   a geared carriage slideably carried on parallel slides that are fixed relative to and rotate with said spindle, and   a geared drive to rotate said geared carriage about the rotational axis of the spindle and thus, via the slides, to impart rotation to such spindle.   
   
   
       12 . The assembly of  claim 11  wherein the carriage is movable, on the slides thereby providing relative axial movement of said carriage and the geared drive relative to said slides and thus both (i) the vibrational apparatus or adaptation and (ii) the spindle. 
   
   
       13 . A drilling assembly comprising or including
 a support,   a vibrational head carried by such support via gas bags which allow movement between the vibrational head and the support but constrains such movement between limits,   apparatus carried by the vibrational head directly or indirectly which is connectable into the drill string, and   the drill string,   wherein the apparatus carried directly or indirectly by the vibrational head has a geared drive of a sliding carriage adapted to slide relative to the axis of the drill string and/or a spindle therefor yet still to impart rotational drive thereto.   
   
   
       14 . The drilling assembly comprising or including
 a support,   a vibrational head carried by such support via gas bags which allow movement between the vibrational head and the support but constrains such movement between limits,   apparatus carried by the vibrational head directly or indirectly which is connectable into the drill string, and   the drill string,   wherein the apparatus carried directly or indirectly by the vibrational head has a geared drive of a sliding carriage adapted to slide relative to the axis of the drill string and/or a spindle therefor yet still to impart rotational drive thereto which includes a rotary drive assembly of  claim 1 .   
   
   
       15 . The use of at least one sliding mount for a gearbox or gear train carriage, the gearbox or gear train being about a spindle axis able to rotate the spindle under tangential forces applied to the mount, the spindle being for connection into a vibrational drill string or other shaft. 
   
   
       16 . (canceled) 
   
   
       17 . A drive assembly suitable for a spindle connection to a drill string, the assembly including
 a drive shaft,   a shuttle rotatable under the action of the drive shaft but being slidable relative thereto, the shuttle carrying magnets,   a containment assembly to constrain the shuttle to a shuttle axis, the containment assembly carrying magnets to co-act with those of the shuttle as the shuttle is rotated by the drive shaft thereby to cause the shuttling of the shuttle,   a spindle not forming part of the shuttle arrangement to receive vibration from said containment assembly and/or said shuttle,   a carriage assembly on part of the spindle slidable on an axis coincident with and/or parallel to the spindle's rotational axis, and   a drive carried by the carriage assembly to rotate the spindle or to rotate both the spindle and part of the carriage assembly.   
   
   
       18 . A spindled apparatus for supporting, vibrating and driving a drill string, the apparatus including
 a support,   a shuttle able to be driven,   a containment assembly to constrain the shuttle to a shuttle axis, the containment assembly being directly or indirectly suspended from the support by gas bags that allow movement up and down,   a spindle not forming part of the shuttle arrangement to receive vibration from said containment assembly and/or said shuttle,   a carriage assembly on part of the spindle slidable on an axis coincident with and/or parallel to the spindle's rotational axis, and   a drive carried by the carriage assembly to rotate the spindle or to rotate both the spindle and part of the carriage assembly.   
   
   
       19 . A spindled apparatus for supporting, vibrating and driving a drill string or other shaft, the apparatus including
 a support,   a drive shaft,   a shuttle rotatable under the action of the drive shaft but being slidable relative thereto, the shuttle carrying magnets,   a containment assembly to constrain the shuttle to a shuttle axis, the containment assembly carrying magnets to co-act with those of the shuttle as the shuttle is rotated by the drive shaft thereby to cause the shuttling of the shuttle, and the containment assembly directly or indirectly being suspended from the support via gas bags,   a spindle not forming part of the shuttle arrangement to receive vibration from said containment assembly and/or said shuttle,   a carriage assembly on part of the spindle slidable on an axis coincident with and/or parallel to the spindle's rotational axis, and   a drive carried by the carriage assembly to rotate the spindle or to rotate both the spindle and part of the carriage assembly.   
   
   
       20 . (canceled) 
   
   
       21 . A vibrational apparatus connectable to, connected to or suitable for connection to a drill string, the apparatus including
 a structure to provide from at least part thereof a vibrational output,   a shuttle at least in part confined by said structure between shuffling limits, the shuttle and structure coacting in such that when the shuttle is rotated about a rotational axis relative to said structure, the shuttle will shuttle back and forth along such axis relative to said structure, and   a drive shaft adapted to rotate the shuttle about said rotational axis yet not provide any substantial fetter to the shuttle's sliding relative thereto as the shuttle shuttles relative to said structure.   
   
   
       22 . The apparatus of  claim 21  wherein the interaction between the shuttle and the drive shaft is a spline or dogged slide interrelationship. 
   
   
       23 . The apparatus of  claim 21  wherein said structure to provide the vibrational output from at least part of the vibrational apparatus is at least a partial housing or extension from a housing of the shuttle. 
   
   
       24 . The apparatus of  claim 23  wherein the output ultimately is that of a spindle not moving axially with the shuttle. 
   
   
       25 . The axial drive of the rotation of a shuttle in apparatus of  claim 1 , the axial drive allowing relative axial movement between an input member and the shuttle. 
   
   
       26 . A hydraulic motored geared drive of a axially moveable carriage on a spindle assembly to rotate the spindle as it axially vibrates independently of the carriage.