• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.32 no.6
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• pp.478-490
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• 2022

TBM disc cutter, which is the main cutting tool of tunnel boring machine (TBM), is replaced when it is excessively worn during the boring process. Disc cutters are usually monitored by workers at cutterhead chamber, and they check the status and wear amount of cutters. Because cutterhead chamber is usually in dangerous circumstance due to high pressure and instability of excavation surface, the measurement by manpower occasionally results in inaccuracy of measurement result. In order to overcome the limitations, the real-time disc cutter monitoring techniques have been developed in some foreign countries. This paper collected the current status of disc cutter monitoring system from the literature. Several types of sensors are used to measure the cutter wear, and it is believed that the collected information can be useful reference when similar domestic technologies are developed in the future.

• Journal of Korean Tunnelling and Underground Space Association
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• v.16 no.6
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• pp.533-542
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• 2014

In this study TBM disc cutter prediction models including Gehring, CSM and NTNU models were investigated and the characteristics of the models were examined. The influence of penetration, uniaxial compressive strength and abrasiveness index on the models was analyzed. The life of disc cutter linearly increases with penetration per revolution and decreases with increasing uniaxial compressive strength of rocks. As the abrasiveness index, CAI, increases, the life of disc cutter in Gehring and CSM model decreases. On the contrary, the life of disc cutter life in NTNU model decreases with increasing CLI. Also, comparisons of predicted disc life were made between models using actual job site data.

• Journal of Korean Tunnelling and Underground Space Association
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.49-59
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• 2019

In this study, the durability of conical pick cutter was compared and analyzed by pre- and post-test visual inspection, measurement of weight loss and wear volume through field test on two types of conical pick cutters applied to rotary drum cutter. In the visual inspection, it was found that only 9 inserts were lost in the slim type conical pick cutter. This result show that the thickness of the head cover surrounding a insert was important to maintain the insert during excavation. The weight loss and wear volume of the heavy type conical pick cutter were less than half that of the slim type. From these results, it can be confirmed that heavy type is more useful than slim type in hard rock. It should be noted that, when determining the wear loss of the conical pick cutter, the mutual comparison of the weight measurement and the wear volume measurement results may be different due to the unit weight of the material and the spalling caused by excavation.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.154-168
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• 2024

The Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) disc cutter is subjected to wear and damage during the rock excavation process, and the worn disc cutter should be replaced on time. The manual inspection by workers is generally required to determine the disc cutter replacement. In this case, the workers are exposed to dangerous environments, and the measurements are sometimes inaccurate. In this study, we developed a technology that measures the disc cutter wear in real time. From a series of laboratory tests, a magnetic sensor was selected as the wear sensor, and the real-time disc cutter measurement system was developed integrating wireless communication modules, power supply and data processing board. In addition, the measurement system was verified in actual TBM excavation circumstances. As a result, it was confirmed that the accuracy and stability of the system.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.33 no.6
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• pp.534-546
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• 2023

If the disc cutter is excessively worn or damaged, it becomes incapable of rotating and efficiently cutting rockmass. Therefore, it is important to appropriately manage the replacement cycle of the disc cutter based on its degree of wear. In general, the replacement cycle is determined based on the results of manual inspection. However, the manual measurements has issues related to worker safety and may lead to inaccurate measurement results. For these reasons, some foreign countries are developing the real-time measurement system of disc cutter wear by using different sensors. The ultrasonic sensors, eddy current sensors, magnetic sensors, and others are utilized for measuring the wear amount of disc cutters. In this study, the applicability of eddy current sensors for real-time measurement of wear amount in TBM disc cutters was evaluated. The distance measurement accuracy of the eddy current sensor was assessed through laboratory tests. In particular, the accuracy of eddy-current sensor was evaluated in various environmental conditions within the cutterhead chamber. In addition, the measurement accuracy of the eddy current sensor was validated using a 17-inch disc cutter.

• Journal of Korean Tunnelling and Underground Space Association
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.39-58
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• 2024

Tunnel Boring Machines (TBM) use multiple disc cutters to excavate tunnels through rock. These cutters wear out due to continuous contact and friction with the rock, leading to decreased cutting efficiency and reduced excavation performance. The rock's abrasivity significantly affects cutter wear, with highly abrasive rocks causing more wear and reducing the cutter's lifespan. The Cerchar Abrasivity Index (CAI) is a key indicator for assessing rock abrasivity, essential for predicting disc cutter life and performance. This study aims to develop a new method for effectively estimating CAI using rock strength, petrological characteristics, linear regression, and machine learning. A database including CAI, uniaxial compressive strength, Brazilian tensile strength, and equivalent quartz content was created, with additional derived variables. Variables for multiple linear regression were selected considering statistical significance and multicollinearity, while machine learning model inputs were chosen based on variable importance. Among the machine learning prediction models, the Gradient Boosting model showed the highest predictive performance. Finally, the predictive performance of the multiple linear regression analysis and the Gradient Boosting model derived in this study were compared with the CAI prediction models of previous studies to validate the results of this research.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.143-153
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• 2024

Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) method is a tunnel excavation method that produces lower levels of noise and vibration during excavation compared to drilling and blasting methods, and it offers higher stability. It is increasingly being applied to tunnel projects worldwide. The disc cutter is an excavation tool mounted on the cutterhead of a TBM, which constantly interacts with the ground at the tunnel face, inevitably leading to wear. In this study quantitatively predicted disc cutter wear using geological conditions, TBM operational parameters, and machine learning algorithms. Among the input variables for predicting disc cutter wear, the Uniaxial Compressive Strength (UCS) is considerably limited compared to machine and wear data, so the UCS estimation for the entire section was first conducted using TBM machine data, and then the prediction of the Coefficient of Wearing rate(CW) was performed with the completed data. Comparing the performance of CW prediction models, the XGBoost model showed the highest performance, and SHapley Additive exPlanation (SHAP) analysis was conducted to interpret the complex prediction model.

• Journal of Korean Tunnelling and Underground Space Association
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.475-488
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• 2017

Wear prediction of TBM disc cutters is a very important issue for hard rock TBMs as number of cutter head intervention. In this regard, some model such as NTNU, Gehring model, CSM models have been used to predict disc cutter wear and intervention interval. There are some deficiencies in these models. This paper developed a new test method for wear prediction for TBM disc cutter and proposed a new abrasion index. In this regard, different abrasivity indices along with their testing methods are explained. A comparative study is performed to develop the predictability of different cutter life evaluation methods and index. The evaluation of the new methods proposed in this paper shows a very good agreement with the actual cutter life and intervention interval length. The proposed tester and index can be easily used to predict the intervention interval length and cutter wear evaluation in both planning and construction stages of a TBM tunneling project.

• Journal of Korean Tunnelling and Underground Space Association
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.281-301
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• 2024

The power cable tunnels which are part of the underground transmission line project, are constructed using the shield TBM method. The disc cutter among the shield TBM components plays an important role in breaking rock mass. Efficient tunnel construction is possible only when appropriate replacement occurs as the wear limit is reached or damage such as uneven wear occurs. A study was conducted to determine the wear conditions of disc cutter using a deep learning algorithm based on real-time measurement data of wear and rotation speed. Based on the results of full-scaled tunnelling tests, it was confirmed that measurement data was obtained differently depending on the wear conditions of disc cutter. Using real-time measurement data, an algorithm was developed to determine disc cutter wear characteristics based on a convolutional neural network model. Distributional patterns of data can be learned through CNN filters, and the performance of the model that can classify uniform wear and uneven wear through these pattern features.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society for Rock Mechanics Conference
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• 2006.09a
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• pp.59-79
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• 2006

The successful execution of shield tunnelling depends on the cutting ability of cutter. So the selection of shape, size and material of cutter according to geology condition is important work. Since shield tunnelling method was first invented in 1881, the cutting tool for rock has been developed owing to various experiments and researches, the study for soil, however, is insufficient. This paper introduces the shield tunnelling that will be carried out on weathered rock section (920m) of Seoul Subway Line 7 Extension C703. The shape and the material of cutter are discussed required for execution without replacement of cutter tool as well as for advance of excavation efficiency. In addition the estimation method of cutter abrasion in case of excavation on weathered soil is proposed and verified. Specially, the coefficient of abrasion for different soil and cutter is proposed by means of investigation into construction example of foreign country.