Blasthole drill having a drill pipe seal assembly

摘要

A blasthole drill includes a drill pipe seal to seal an opening around a drill pipe which extends through a drill deck in order to substantially prevent drilled ground material, such as dust and rock chips, from escaping into the atmosphere. The seal comprises a pliable membrane which is capable of sealing the opening around the drill pipe and which also allows the drill pipe to be positioned in variable drilling positions while still providing the necessary sealing arrangement. First and second flexible seal flaps are connected to the drill deck in an overlapping fashion. The seal flaps are separable to allow the drill pipe to pass therethrough, but otherwise remain overlapped. The flexible seal flaps substantially seal the opening around the drill pipe in any operable position of the drill pipe. To increase the sealing effectiveness, additional pairs of similar seal flaps may be added. The drill pipe seal allows the drill angle of the drill pipe to be changed without having to remove the drill pipe from the drill deck.