The disclosure relates in general to a shield apparatus, and more particularly, to a flexible in-ground shield apparatus.
In-ground systems are used for a variety of purposes, such in-ground systems include in-ground trenches and walls. These in-ground systems can include ground fluid and product recovery trenches, seepage trenches/collection trenches, slurry walls and cement walls, permeable reactive barriers/full and gate systems, High Density Poly Ethylene (HDPE) barrier walls, underground alluvial fluid storage reservoir containment walls, cement footing foundations and “formless walls”, etc. Large scale industrial trenchers have been developed that are able to dig trenches that are extremely deep (e.g., up to 125′ feet below grade), these trenches being used to form such in-ground trenches and walls.
The disclosure is directed to a flexible in-ground shield comprising a first wall, a second wall, a third wall, a plurality of shoring members, and a plurality of pivoting couplers. The first wall is disposed on a first side of the flexible in-ground shield, the second wall is disposed on a second side of the flexible in-ground shield, and the third wall is disposed on a third side of the flexible in-ground shield and coupled to the first and second walls. The plurality of shoring members extend between the first wall and the second wall, and the plurality of pivoting couplers, coupled to ends of the plurality of shoring members, respectively, allow the first wall and the second wall to pivot relative to the third wall.
In some configurations, the plurality of pivoting couplers are at least one of a hinge joint, a ball and socket joint, a condyloid joint, and a saddle joint.
In some configurations, the flexible in-ground shield further comprises a pivoting flap, disposed on a leading edge of a bottom of the flexible in-ground shield, to prevent dirt from entering the flexible in-ground shield at the leading edge during use.
In some configurations, the first and second walls taper from a greater width proximate a top of the flexible in-ground shield to a lesser width proximate to a bottom of the flexible in-ground shield.
In some configurations, wherein a top of the flexible in-ground shield receives fill material to fill a trench formed by a trencher that the flexible in-ground shield is coupled to.
In some configurations, the top of the flexible in-ground shield receives the fill material via a conveyor coupled to the trencher.
In some configurations, the fill material is disposed into a rear hopper coupled to a rear of the trencher.
In some configurations, the flexible in-ground shield further comprises a flexible pipe tubular guide, disposed between the first, second, and third walls, to guide a flexible pipe toward a bottom of the flexible in-ground shield.
In some configurations, the flexible in-ground shield further comprises a release post, disposed on at least one of the first and second walls, to couple the flexible in-ground shield to a trencher chain mechanism via a release hook.
In some configurations, the flexible in-ground shield further comprises a fill material guide member coupled to the first, second, and third walls. The fill material guide member is angled to taper an area between the third wall and a front of the flexible in-ground shield from a greater area proximate to a top of the flexible in-ground shield to a lesser area proximate to a bottom of the flexible in-ground shield, the fill material guide member guiding a fill material disposed into the flexible in-ground shield to the lesser area.
In some configurations, the flexible in-ground shield further comprises a trencher coupler disposed proximate to a top of the flexible in-ground shield, the trencher coupler coupling the flexible in-ground shield to a trencher.
In some configurations, the third wall is recessively coupled to the first and second walls to form a channel therebetween, the channel being disposed on a back of the flexible in-ground shield.
In some configurations, the flexible in-ground shield further comprising a flexible pipe curved guide including a curved surface to redirect a direction of travel of a flexible pipe.
In some configurations, a system includes the flexible in-ground shield, and the system further comprises a trencher.
In some configurations, the system further comprises a sump apparatus, the sump apparatus including a sump shielding dimensioned to allow the sump shielding to be disposed between the first and second walls.
In some configurations, a cable is coupled proximate to a bottom of the sump apparatus and is used to release the sump apparatus from the flexible in-ground shield.
In some configurations, the flexible in-ground shield further comprises a hopper coupled a top of the flexible in-ground shield.
The disclosure will now be described with reference to the drawings wherein:
While this disclosure is susceptible of embodiment(s) in many different forms, there is shown in the drawings and described herein in detail a specific embodiment(s) with the understanding that the present disclosure is to be considered as an exemplification and is not intended to be limited to the embodiment(s) illustrated.
It will be understood that like or analogous elements and/or components, referred to herein, may be identified throughout the drawings by like reference characters. In addition, it will be understood that the drawings are merely schematic representations of the invention, and some of the components may have been distorted from actual scale for purposes of pictorial clarity.
It has become appreciated that typical in-ground shields based on existing shield technology have a deficiency. For example, when such typical in-ground shields experience forces on their side walls during excavation, particularly when such excavation entails excavation in a non-straight line such as an arc or curve, such forces can create cracks in their side walls. When that occurs, all work stops on the worksite while such cracks are repaired. Stopping any worksite is costly. At least one flexible in-ground shield is disclosed below that at least mitigates such a deficiency by allowing the shield to flex in response to such forces, thereby at least mitigating cracks associated with the typical in-ground shield.
Referring now to the drawings and in particular to
In the example shown in
The flexible in-ground shield 100 further includes a plurality of shoring members, such as shoring members 121a-g, that extend between the first wall 112 and the second wall 114. The shoring members 121a-g shore the structure of the flexible in-ground shield 100 in that they maintain a substantially (+−5%) constant distance between the first wall 112 and the second wall 114 when external forces, such as those applied by soil, are pushing on the first and second walls 112/114 during use. As shown, the first and second walls 112/114 are substantially perpendicularly (+−5%) coupled to the third wall 116, although other angles are possible without departing from the scope of the embodiment(s) disclosed.
The shoring members 121a-g can be pipes (e.g., solid pipes, hollow pipes, internally webbed pipes, etc.), beams (boxed beams, I-beams, H-beams, T-beams, L-beams, C-beams, etc.), rods, a combination of different types of beams, or any other type of members that are able to withstand the compressive forces exerted on the beams. Although seven (7) shoring members 121a-g are shown in the example flexible in-ground shield 100, one skilled in the art would understand that more or less shoring members 121 can be used depending upon a height of the flexible in-ground shield 100, without departing from the scope of the embodiment(s) disclosed.
The flexible in-ground shield 100 further includes a plurality of pivoting couplers, such as a plurality of pivoting couplers 132a-g and pivoting couplers 134a-g, that are coupled to opposite ends of the plurality of shoring members 121a-g, respectively, as shown. The plurality of pivoting couplers 132a-g/134a-g allow the first wall 112 and the second wall 114 to pivot relative to the third wall 116. This freedom to pivot, even by small amounts (+−10 degrees), relieves stresses on the first and second walls 112/114 during use that otherwise could cause cracks in the first and second walls 112/114 when they typically are unable to pivot relative to the third wall 116 due to use of fixed/non-pivoting shoring members (not shown). In at least one embodiment, the plurality of pivoting couplers 132a-g/134a-g are at least one of a hinge joint, a ball and socket joint, a condyloid joint, a saddle joint, a combination of these, or any other pivoting coupler that allow the first and second walls 112/114 to pivot relative to the third wall 116. As shown with the flexible in-ground shield 200, a plurality of hinges 232/234 are used to couple shoring members 221 to the first and second walls 212/214, respectively.
As shown in
In at least one embodiment, the flexible pipe tubular guide 225 is a first guide member and the flexible in-ground shield 200 includes a second guide member, such as a flexible pipe curved guide 450 (
During operation, the flexible pipe 865 enters the flexible pipe tubular guide 225 and travels down a height of the flexible in-ground shield 200 into the ground to the flexible pipe curved guide 450. The flexible pipe 865 then follows a curved surface 452 of the flexible pipe curved guide 450 that redirects the flexible pipe 865 to an inlet 409 of the sump pipe 406. Depending upon the size of the flexible in-ground shield 200, the flexible pipe curved guide 450 can likewise vary in size. For example, as shown in
In at least one embodiment, a hopper can be coupled to the flexible in-ground shield 200, such as a hopper 270, as shown in
In at least one embodiment, the flexible in-ground shield 200 further includes a fill material guide member 280 coupled to the first, second, and third walls 212/214/216. The fill material guide member 280 is angled to taper an area between the third wall 216 and a front 282 of the flexible in-ground shield 200 from a greater area proximate to a top 218 of the flexible in-ground shield 200 to a lesser area proximate to a bottom 219 of the flexible in-ground shield 200. The fill material guide member 280 guides the fill material 125 disposed into the flexible in-ground shield 200 to the lesser area proximate to the bottom 219 of the flexible in-ground shield 200, while also acting as a protective shield for components disposed behind the fill material guide member 280, such as the flexible pipe curved guide 450.
The flexible in-ground shield 200 includes a leading edge 412 and a trailing edge 414 disposed on the bottom 219 of the flexible in-ground shield 200, the leading edge 412 being closest to the trencher chain 810 (
As shown in
The trencher 860 then rolls backward while operating the trencher chain mechanism 890 (
In at least one embodiment, the flexible in-ground shield 200 can receive the fill material 125 via a conveyor 870 (
For example, this trencher 860 can be of the type developed by DeWind Corporation. The trencher 860 can be of the type that uses one-pass trenching technology, such as model MT2000 or MT3500. These trenchers install various types of systems deeper, faster, safer, and at less cost than most conventional alternatives. The MT 3500 (e.g., with up to 3,500 horse power) can reach depths of up to 125′ feet below grade for “Mix In Place” walls, such as soil Bentonite Walls, soil cement Bentonite wall installations, and the sump apparatus 405, discussed above. In some instances, the trencher 860 utilizes the in-ground flexible shield(s) 100/200 to install in-ground systems.
The foregoing description merely explains and illustrates the disclosure and the disclosure is not limited thereto except insofar as the appended claims are so limited, as those skilled in the art who have the disclosure before them will be able to make modifications without departing from the scope of the disclosure.
This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 63/128,638 filed on Dec. 21, 2020, entitled “FLEXIBLE IN-GROUND SHIELD APPARATUS”, the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
63128638 | Dec 2020 | US |