Development and performance analysis of new spade bit designs

The purpose of this work is to present the development and experimental performance assessment of a new generation of spade drill bits. Rigorous point geometry and drilling force models that describe the topology of the chill and its cutting behaviour have guided the development of these new drills with unique topological features. It is shown, both analytically through simulations and through a systematic experimental study, that the performance of the newly developed topologies exceeds that of the commercially available designs, The now spade bits yield lower thrust and torque over the whole range of pragmatic operating conditions. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.