Abstract: The traditional cutter holder of tunnel boring machines has vast components and its replacement actions are complex, leading to inefficient cutter disassembly and assembly. Thus, the authors analyze the force characteristics of traditional cutter wedges when tightening the cutter shaft, and design a novel type of cutter holder with rotating friction bodies to reduce the installation of cutter holder components, achieving rapid disassembly and assembly of cutters by manual or robot. Using finite element technology and contact theory, a mechanical model for cutter holder fastening is established, and the stress and strain of the entire cutter holder, disc cutter shaft, internal rotating block, cutter box, and clamping block are examined. Additionally, a full-scale rock breaking test and graded static load test are conducted for the novel cutter holder. The experimental results show that the novel cutter holder has a 45% increase in cutter replacement efficiency compared to traditional cutter holders, indicating its high feasibility.

Key words: tunnel boring machine, disc cutter, rotating friction body, novel type of cutter holder