This invention relates to flood mitigation systems, and, more particularly, to a flood barrier wall formed of a number of barrier units having structure along the bottom surface, and end-to-end connections, that collectively resist dislocation when impacted by flood waters and provide substantial protection against the ingress of water there through.
It is often highly desirable to locate residences, businesses, farms and other establishments nearby bodies of water such as streams, rivers and lakes for aesthetic and commercial reasons. Depending upon weather conditions, elevation and other factors, many locations experience flooding from time-to-time which can create devastating material damage and life-threatening situations.
Locations that are particularly susceptible to flooding are often at least partially protected by earthen dikes, levees or other permanent structures erected along the banks of a body of water. Despite these measures, flood waters may crest above the level of permanent structures thus exposing establishments and residents to physical danger and economic loss. In other areas where flooding may occur only periodically, permanent flood barrier structures are often not employed at all.
The solution suggested in the prior art to both of the situations noted above is the erection of temporary flood barriers atop permanent structures or along the banks of a body of water with no permanent flood protection. The most common form of temporary flood protection is sand bags which are stacked atop one another to form a wall. The bags are typically made of burlap and filled with sand or other local fill material. While temporary sand bag walls provide some degree of protection from flood waters, they are highly labor intensive and time consuming to construct. Further, the sand bags are usually not reusable and must be disposed of after the flood danger has passed which is costly and creates a disposal problem. Moreover, sand bag walls tend to topple over if the flood water crests at or above the height of such walls, and can become structurally weakened, when saturated, to the point of failure.
A variety of other designs have been proposed in the prior art to mitigate the damage that can be caused by flooding. Inflatable barrier walls have been suggested, such as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,712,998; 5,984,577 and 5,538,360. Wall structures formed of aluminum, plastic or other materials are also common. See, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,690,865; 6,551,025 and 7,214,005. Further, modular units that are connected end-to-end to form a flood barrier wall have been suggested, such as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,394,705.
All of the designs noted above suffer from one or more deficiencies. Those that are intended for a single use, such as sand bags, are of dubious economic value and create a disposal problem. Many temporary structures are bulky, cumbersome to erect and disassemble, and, require substantial space for storage. The cost of storage alone for units that are not needed for relatively long periods of time may be prohibitively expensive for communities, and especially for individual owners of residences and/or businesses.
This invention is directed to a flood mitigation system comprising a number of barrier units connected end-to-end to form a flood barrier wall wherein each individual unit includes gripping structure along a bottom wall to resist dislocation when impacted by flood water and floating debris.
In one presently preferred embodiment, each of the barrier units is formed of plastic material having a top wall, bottom wall, opposed end walls and opposed side walls interconnected to form a hollow interior which may receive ballast such as sand, water, gravel or combinations thereof. The bottom wall of each barrier unit is formed with a number of spaced channels, extending into the hollow interior toward the top wall, defining gripping elements between them. When the barrier units are placed on a surface such as soil or sand, and filled with ballast, the barrier units may sink downwardly so that the mud, sand or the like from such surface enters the channels of the barrier units and engages their gripping elements to prevent lateral displacement in response to forces exerted by flood water and debris.
In one embodiment, one of the end walls of each barrier unit is formed with an outwardly extending plate or tongue and the opposite end wall has an elongated groove. The barrier units may be positioned end-to-end to form a barrier wall wherein the tongue of one barrier unit extends into the groove of an adjacent unit. Preferably, a seal is provided in the end wall having the tongue in position to engage the end wall of an adjacent barrier unit with the elongated groove when such barrier units are connected together. In an alternative embodiment, each end wall is formed with an elongated groove such that when barrier units are placed end-to-end to form a barrier wall a board or plate may be inserted into the elongated groove of adjacent barriers, spanning two barrier units, to aid in securing them together.
The barrier units employed in the flood mitigation system of this invention are durable, light-weight when not filled with ballast, easy to handle and assemble, and may be used for a number of years.
The structure, operation and advantages of the presently preferred embodiment of this invention will become further apparent upon consideration of the following description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:
Referring now to
In the presently preferred embodiment, each of the walls 12-22 is formed of a semi-rigid plastic material chosen from the group consisting of low density polyethylene, high density polyethylene, acrylonitrile or butadiene styrene, high impact styrene, polycarbonates and the like. These plastic materials are all inherently tough and exhibit good energy absorption characteristics. They will also deform and elongate, but will not fail in a brittle manner at energy inputs which cause other materials to undergo brittle failure. Additionally, materials of this type are unaffected by weather and have excellent basic resistance to weathering, leaching and biodegradation. Ultraviolet inhibitors can be added to such materials making them further resistant to the effects of weather. They also retain their mechanical and chemical properties at low ambient temperatures.
The hollow interior 24 of each barrier unit 10 is preferably filled with a ballast material such as water or other liquid, a granular solid material such as sand, gravel and the like, or, combinations thereof. Preferably, the top wall 12 of barrier units 10 is formed with one or more fill holes 13 for insertion of ballast, and the bottom wall 14 may include one or more drain holes 15. The walls 12-22 of barrier units 10 may have a thickness in the range of about ⅛ inch to 1 inch so as to perform satisfactorily in service. In one presently preferred embodiments, the barrier units 10 may have a length in the range of about 6 to 8 feet between end walls 16, 18, a height of about 4 feet between the top and bottom walls 12, 14, and, a depth between the opposed side walls 20, 22 of about 28 inches. At those dimensions, the barrier units have an internal volume of about 31.72 cubic feet and hold about 235 gallons of water.
The side walls 20, 22 of each barrier unit 10 have a somewhat different construction as best seen in
Extending upwardly from the step 28, in a direction toward top wall 12, is an intermediate section 30 which terminates at an upper section 32. The upper section 32, in turn, is connected between the intermediate section 30 and the top wall 12 of barrier unit 10. As best seen in
Referring to
The side wall 22 comprises a base section 48 which extends from the bottom wall 14 to a horizontally oriented step or ledge 50. The base section 48 may be tapered or angled inwardly, toward the side wall 20, in a direction from the ledge 50 toward bottom wall 14. The base section 48 may have a vertical height of about 9 inches, measured from the bottom wall 14 upwardly. The horizontal extent of the ledge 50 may be on the order of about 2 inches measured in the direction from the outer edge of base section 48 toward the hollow interior 24 of barrier device 10.
Extending upwardly from the ledge 50, in a direction toward top wall 12, is an intermediate section 52 which terminates at an upper section 54. The upper section 54, in turn, is connected between the intermediate section 52 and the top wall 12 of barrier unit 10. As best seen in
A number of stabilizers 62 are integrally formed in the intermediate section 52 of side wall 22, at regularly spaced intervals between the end walls 16, 18. Each stabilizer 62 includes a floor 64 and opposed sides 66 and 68. The floor 64 of each stabilizer 62 is coplanar with the ledge 50. The sides 66, 68 of each stabilizer 62 taper inwardly, toward one another, in a direction from the floor 64 toward the ledge 60.
In the presently preferred embodiment, the bottom wall 14 of each barrier unit 10 may be formed with a number of channels 64a, 64b and 64c which are spaced from one another in a direction from one side wall 20 to the other side wall 22, and which extend between end walls 16, 18. The channels 64a-c protrude into the interior 24 of the barrier units 10, toward top wall 12, preferably at a height of about 3.5 inches. Adjacent channels 64a-c define gripping elements 66a-d in the bottom wall 14. Specifically, gripping element 66a is formed between the bottom section 26 of side wall 20 and channel 64a, gripping element 66b is located between adjacent channels 64a and 64b, gripping element 66c is formed by channels 64b and 64c, and, the fourth gripping element 66d extends from the channel 64c to the bottom section 48 of side wall 22. In one presently preferred embodiment, wherein the depth of the barrier units 10 is 28 inches, each of the channels 64a-c may have a depth dimension of 3.5 inches, and the depth of gripping elements 66a-d may be 2.56 inches, 4.25 inches, 4.25 inches and 5.56 inches, respectively.
Referring to
It is apparent from viewing
Referring to
The opposite end wall 18 is formed with an elongated groove 90, and an L-shaped slot 76 as in end wall 16. The elongated groove 90 is located between the channel 64b and a point just below the vertical leg 78 of slot 76. See
The elongated groove 90 in the end wall 18 of each barrier unit 10 is positioned and dimensioned to receive and secure the tongue 74 on the end wall 16 of an adjacent barrier unit 10 when they are connected together to form the barrier wall 11. With the tongue 74 seated within elongated groove 90, the segments 84-88 of seal 82 on end wall 16 of one barrier unit 10 contact the facing surface of end wall 18 of an abutting barrier unit 10 to resist the passage of flood water, debris and the like between adjacent barrier units 10. Additionally, as schematically shown in
Referring now to
The flood mitigation system of this invention resists displacement when impacted with flood water and debris due the construction of its bottom wall 14 and either of the connections between the end walls 16, 18 of adjacent barrier units 10 as described above and shown in the drawings. It is contemplated that on surfaces that have been or will be softened by rain, melting snow or waterway overflow, the barrier units 10 filled with ballast material will sink into such surfaces such that mud, sand and the like may enter channels 64a-c and engage the gripping elements 66a-d. The gripping elements 66a-d have sufficient rigidity and height such that lateral displacement in response to impact by flood water and debris is minimized. Further, the connections between the end walls 16, 18 of adjacent barrier units 10 within barrier wall 11 adds additional resistance to lateral displacement.
While the invention has been described with reference to a preferred embodiment, it should be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes may be made and equivalents substituted for elements thereof without departing from the scope of the invention. In addition, many modifications may be made to adapt a particular situation or material to the teachings of the invention without departing from the essential scope thereof. For example, the dimensions of the various elements of barrier units 10 noted above are given by way of example only and in no way limit the scope of this invention.
Therefore, it is intended that the invention not be limited to the particular embodiment disclosed as the best mode contemplated for carrying out this invention, but that the invention will include all embodiments falling within the scope of the appended claims.
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