Arthur james arnot
Arthur James Arnot was born on the 26th August 1865 in Hamilton, Scotland and died on the 15th October 1946 in Castle Hill, New South Wales, Australia. He was an Australian electrical engineer and inventor. He is predominantly known for patenting the world’s first electrical drill on 20th August 1889. While working for the Union Company in Melbourne, he designed this primarily to drill rock and to dig coal. Between 1894 and 1901, he designed and managed the Spencer Street Power Station in Victoria, Melbourne. It supplied electricity to the city.
The electric drill
A drill is a tool that is fitted with an attachment, usually a cutting or driving tool. It also has a drill bit which drills holes. Drills are generally used in activities involving woodwork, metalwork and construction. Drills have a wide variety of features, including power and capacity. The electric drill uses electricity. There are many types of electric drills, each designed for different purposes. For example, the hammer and pneumatic drills are used for drilling into hard materials such as concrete or rock, whereas there are specially designed electric drills which can be used as screwdrivers. Engineer drills are designed for drilling steel, and angle drills are made for convenient drilling in confined spaces.
The development of the electric drill
The electric drill was invented because people needed something other than hands to drill into hard surfaces such as rock and coal. Arthur James Arnot’s intention when inventing this was to drill into rock for the mining of coal. He invented this device with his with colleague William Blanch Brain. This electric drill that he invented however was not portable, but it did function as a working power tool.
Further development of the electric drill
Since its creation, the electric drill is widely used all over the world for its convenience and efficiency. Many different models and variations have been made, with portable cord/ cordless versions.
how to use an electric drill
parts of an electric drill
Fig.1 The inside of an electric drill and what parts are necessary to its function.
How a drill works
The exterior of a drill has five elements: the safety latch, reversing switch (alters direction of drill), a torque adjustment, a chuck (keeps bit form moving) and the handle. When you pull the trigger of the drill, an electric circuit is complete and electricity powers the motor inside to turn the bit. Pushing the drill into a surface will allow the bit to slightly penetrate the material. Rotating it will push the drill bit into the surface and there is enough friction to cut the material below around the bit, forming a hole in the surface of the material.