Patent Application
20130315670
This disclosure relates to a water management gate assembly for use at one or more ends of a culvert pipe or other tubular water management structure. More specifically, the disclosure describes a unique flap gate assembly, its manufacture and use.
Culvert pipes are well-known and are commonly employed as a conduit for water drainage and management. Culverts are constructed of metal, concrete or polymer and may be formed into a variety of cross-sectional shapes. Culverts are typically placed at or under ground such as under bridges, roadways, etc. to allow water to pass through the culvert pipe from one side of the overlying structure to the other. Often it is desirable to allow water to more readily pass in a single direction through the culvert pipe. In such instances a flap gate can be installed at one or more ends of the culvert pipe.
An example of a known type of flap gate is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,324,506, which issued Apr. 13, 1982 to Thomas J. Steinke. Another type of flap gate is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,800,919, which issued Jan. 31, 1989 to Lothar Bachman. The entire content of each of the aforementioned patents is incorporated herein by reference.
One problem that exists in many known flap gate assemblies is that they are prefabricated to be mounted to a specific diameter culvert pipe. Often if the end of the pipe to which the assembly is to be mounted is misshaped, damaged or otherwise outside the acceptable mounting criteria it can be difficult or impossible to properly mount the flap gate assembly thereto. Given the often hard to reach locations of culvert pipes and the relatively cumbersome size and shape of most flap gates assemblies, correctively machining the assembly or pipe on site to correct the fit is often problematic or impossible. In addition, many known gate assemblies require multiple people (installers) to properly affix an assembly to a culvert pipe.
In light of the above, a need exists to provide an adjustable culvert gate assembly which has a greater tolerance of imperfect pipe mounting shapes/surfaces and diameters than known prefabricate gate assemblies, and which can be more readily mounted by a single installer.
In general, this disclosure describes a culvert gate assembly which includes a new clamping mechanism which allows the assembly to be more easily fitted to imperfectly sized or shaped culvert pipes of an intended diameter. More specifically, the gate assembly described herein includes a “quick clamp” mechanism which not only allows the gate band to be more easily affixed to a culvert pipe with only a single installer, but also provides redundant securement of the support band and lid to the culvert pipe to which the gate assembly is attached.
The details of one or more aspects of the disclosure are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below. Other features, objects, and advantages will be apparent from the description and drawings, and from the claims.
While this invention may be embodied in many different forms, there are described in detail herein specific examples of the invention. This description is an exemplification of the principles of the invention and is not intended to limit the invention to the particular examples illustrated.
As indicated above known culvert “flap” style gate assemblies are often cumbersome and difficult to properly attach to the end of a culvert pipe that has been exposed to real world conditions and abuse.
As shown in PRIOR ART
Even under ideal conditions such as in the PRIOR ART figures shown, it is often necessary to fully support the assembly 10 on the pipe 11 during attachment to ensure that the assembly 10 does not slide off (see PRIOR ART
To avoid the need for multiple installers, and to provide a gate assembly that can be more readily installed onto pipes having a wider range of sizing errors or imperfect shapes, the gate assembly of the present disclosure is provided with a “quick clamp” mechanism that allows the inner diameter of the engagement band to be adjustable and more user friendly than the PRIOR ART assembly design.
Turning to
As is shown, the lid 130 includes two sections an upper portion 132 and lower portion 134. In some embodiments the upper portion 132 is welded or otherwise engaged to the collar support 120. In at least one embodiment the collar support 120 and upper portion 132 of the lid are machined as a single integral piece.
As may be best seen in
The quick clamp feature mentioned previously is made up of two “L-shaped” flanges 150 and 152 respectively. Each flange is integral with, welded thereto, or otherwise engaged to an end of the engagement band 102 such as in the manner shown in
As shown, each flange 150 and 152 defines a pair of openings 154 and 156 through which adjustment fasteners such as bolts 158 can be passed. Each bolt is secured at their end by a nut 160.
The quick clamp arrangement of the flanges 150 and 152 on the engagement collar 102 allows a single installer to position the gate assembly 100 over a pipe 200, such as in the manner shown in
The degree to which the diameter of opening 108 can be adjusted by the assembly described herein may be as great as approximately +/−30% of the predetermined nominal opening diameter. For example, in at least one embodiment the opening 108 is intended for a pipe 200 having a diameter of 18 inches, then by adjusting the nuts 160 and bolts 158 the opening 108 can be altered to be as small as about 12 inches or as large as about 24 inches. In at least one embodiment the opening 108 is variable between +/−20% the nominal opening diameter. In some embodiments the opening 108 is variable between +/−10% the nominal opening diameter.
Once the nuts 160 and bolts 158 are properly tightened the assembly 100 is adequately secured to the pipe 200. However by also tightening studs 122 of the collar support 120, such as in the manner shown in
In addition to the exemplary embodiment shown, one of ordinary skill in the art will understand that the present gate assembly 100 and its various components can be assembled in a variety of manners and in a variety of different sizes and configurations. Examples of such alternative embodiments are depicted in
As shown in
The above disclosure is intended to be illustrative and not exhaustive. The description will suggest many variations and alternatives to those of ordinary skill in the art. All of these alternatives and variations are intended to be included within the scope of the attached claims. Those familiar with the art may recognize other equivalents to the specific embodiments described herein which equivalents are also intended to be encompassed by the claims attached hereto.
This Application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/651923, filed May 25, 2012, the entire contents of which are herein incorporated by reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61651923 | May 2012 | US |
