Drill head and apparatus therefor

摘要

The invention relates to a wet drill head (210) used for drilling applications in the mining industry. The drill head (210) includes a shaft (260) comprising a drive means engagement end and a drill rod receiving end, the shaft further defining an inlet aperture, an outlet aperture and a channel extending between the inlet and outlet apertures; a shaft housing for housing at least a portion of the shaft a fluid chamber (278) for receiving a fluid, the fluid chamber being in fluid communications with the portion of the shaft defining the inlet aperture; means for rotatably mouting the shaft within the housing (250) one or more internal seals (280,282) for preventing the ingress of fluid from the fluid chamber into the portion of the shaft housing in which the mouting means are located; and at least one fluid exhaust passageway for, in the event of the one or more internal seals failing, exhausting the fluid from the fluid chamber; such that in the event of the one or more internal seals failing the fluid in the fluid chamber is exhausted therefrom via the fluid exhaust passageway thereby providing a visual indication of the failure of the one or more internal seals.