The use of commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) electronic equipment, workstations, consoles, and other furniture or accommodations aboard ships has been increasing. Equipment on a ship may be subjected to a variety of loading conditions, including shock, and the installation of such equipment must account for this loading, generally by fixing the equipment to the ship's deck. Much of the equipment being installed aboard ships during upgrades or reconfigurations is, however, no longer designed specifically for shipboard applications. Thus, the appropriate mechanical, electrical, and human interfaces must be reconciled, which can require a large effort. Toward this end, the Navy has adapted a modular foundation system based upon ISO Standard 7166 track, under “Modular Open Ship Architecture” or MOSA. The system is called “FlexTech.”
The FlexTech track system includes ISO 7166 standard geometry slotted rails or tracks that are currently fabricated from either aluminum or steel and are installed in a parallel array at 12-inch transverse spacing track-to-track, with tiedown locations in the tracks at 1-inch spacing in the longitudinal direction. There are two track rail cross-section designs, “high track” and “low track,” both of which are bolted directly to the true deck. The space between the slotted tracks is filled by false deck panels, and the space between the false and true decks is used to accommodate electrical and other cables and connections. The track array provides a rectangular grid on the floor that allows easy spotting and installation for equipment items conforming to the track/tiedown spacing.
While considerable economies in equipment installation are possible using the SMART track system, an area of concern arises when a floor plan layout spots equipment or furniture in such a way that the attachment points lie between the tracks. In order to install equipment not conforming to the 12-inch×1-inch track/tiedown spacing, and to provide increased load capacity beyond that possible with a single track tiedown point, several distinct adapters have been developed. The necessity for adapters of various kinds has, however, several adverse effects upon the equipment installation. The increased installed equipment height associated with the multiple adapters changes seating, keyboarding, and viewing parameters from the original equipment design, which can cause ergonomic problems for those using the equipment. In addition, the adapters are complex, and considerable labor can be required to make the several levels of bolted attachments required from some arbitrary equipment base down to the foundation beams. Where equipment and furniture are closely packed in a compartment, it may be necessary to remove several pieces in order to access the adapter attachment bolts for the piece being added, removed, or modified, which can increase the costs of outfitting or retrofitting compartments with equipment.
A foundation adapter module for use with a track system having regularly spaced attachment points along regularly spaced parallel tracks is provided to mount a piece of equipment to the track system. The foundation adapter or tie-down module includes a plate assembly having a lower plate and an upper plate fastened together. A fitting is adjustably disposed to extend from an upper surface of the plate assembly for attachment to a piece of equipment. The upper plate is adjustably fastenable to the lower plate for translation in a direction parallel to the tracks and in a direction transverse to the tracks.
One or more slidable restraining members are disposed on the plate assembly and to fit to the attachment points of the track system to restrain the plate assembly from vertical pullout from the track system and motion transverse to the track system. The slidable restraining members permit sliding motion of the plate assembly along a respective track. One or more locking members are disposed on the plate assembly to attach to the track to restrain the plate assembly from sliding motion along the track.
In another aspect of the invention, a deck tile system is provided for use with the track system. In one embodiment, a deck tile comprises a generally rectangular planar upper surface and parallel longitudinal edges and parallel transverse edges. A pair of leg elements depend from a lower portion of the deck tile and extend in longitudinal alignment with the parallel longitudinal edges of the upper surface, providing a generally arch-shaped configuration in cross section. A track cover lock is fastenable to the track system and extendible over the track system parallel to the longitudinal edges of the deck tile, the longitudinal edges of the deck tile supportable by the track cover lock.
In another embodiment, a deck tile system is usable with a raised frame attachable to a track system having regularly spaced attachment points along regularly spaced parallel tracks. The raised frame includes vertical legs and horizontal members forming a grid pattern. The horizontal members include inwardly facing lips. A generally flat deck tile has a generally rectangular planar upper surface and parallel longitudinal edges and parallel transverse edges. An attachment system for attaching the deck tile to the raised frame includes clip members attachable along the longitudinal edges of the deck tile and along the inwardly facing lips of the horizontal members of the raised frame.
The invention will be more fully understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:
Two embodiments of a tie-down module are illustrated with more particularity in
To mount equipment to the plate assembly, the fitting 34, such as a threaded bolt, extends from one of several openings 48 in the upper plate. The fitting attaches, such as with external threads, to an internally threaded T-shaped receptacle 50 that is fixed in any suitable manner in each of the openings in the upper plate. See
The upper plate is attachable to the lower plate for linear adjustment both parallel and transverse to the tracks. In this manner, the upper plate can be fixed to the lower plate in a number of locations. The length of the linear adjustment transverse to the tracks is at least equal to the pitch between the openings 48 in the upper plate. Also, the length of the linear adjustment parallel to the tracks is at least equal to the pitch between tie-down points 20 on the tracks. Thus, by choosing the appropriate opening for the fitting and appropriately adjusting the upper plate in the transverse and parallel directions, the fitting can be located in any location between the tracks.
In one embodiment regarding the parallel adjustment, and referring to the straddling module 30, the lower plate includes one or more slots 60 (two are shown in the straddling module in
Two bolts 78 attached to the T-shaped bar 62 protrude through slots 82 in the upper plate to fix the lower plate to the upper plate. Thus, translation of the T-shaped bar parallel to the tracks also causes translation of the upper plate parallel to the tracks.
The upper plate can be adjusted transverse to the tracks in a similar manner. For example, lead screws 84 in the upper plate extend through threaded bores 86 on the T-shaped members. Rotation of the lead screws causes translation of the T-shaped members transverse to the tracks, allowing the bolts to be located in a suitable location within the slots 82.
It will also be appreciated that other adjusting mechanisms can be provided.
The plate assembly is fixed to the tracks with a track fastening assembly that prevents vertical pullout and translation both transverse to the track and along the track. The track fastening assembly drops into place and slides along the track, so attachment is simple. In one embodiment, the track fastening assembly includes a plurality of slidable members 102, such as T-buttons or flange nuts, and one or more attachment studs 104, such as shear pins. The flange nuts restrain the plate assembly and attached equipment from vertical pullout and motion transverse to the track, while allowing the plate assembly to slide longitudinally along the track. The shear pins, once inserted, restrain the plate assembly and attached equipment from translation longitudinally along the track and act as set screws for the tie-down module, preventing vibration of the module within and on top of the tracks.
In the embodiment illustrated, the flange nuts 102 are in the form of T-buttons that extend downwardly from the base plate. A head on each T-button fits through the wide portion of the slot 16 of the track 12. The pitch of the T-buttons on the base plate is the same as the pitch of the wide portions of the track, so that the base plate can be inserted into the track at the wide portions 22 and then slid along the track to lie between the narrow portions 20. In this location, the plate assembly is restrained from vertical pullout from the track and from motion transverse to the track.
In the embodiment illustrated, the attachment stud 104 is formed as a shear pin that fits into the slot 16 in the track. The head portion has a depth and shape to prevent translation along the track. The depth is generally equivalent to the depth of the slot, so that, once inserted in the slot, the head portion cannot translate along the slot. The shape of the head portion may, for example, span the distance from the middle of one wide portion to the middle of an adjacent wide portion or the inner closing edge of one wide portion to the inner closing edge of another wide portion. The shear pin extends through an opening 110 in the base plate for access thereto. To unlock the plate assembly from translation along the track, the pin is lifted up or screwed up, removing the head portion from the slot in the track.
The base plate and the upper plate can be manufactured of any suitably material, depending on the strength requirements of the application. For example, a metal such as aluminum or a composite material can be used. An aluminum extrusion is generally suitable for providing a strong plate assembly. The plates can also be formed with a suitable grid pattern to reduce material and weight, as is known in the casting field.
An embodiment of an arch deck tile 120 is illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 11-14. The arch deck tile has a planar upper surface 122. Depending legs 124 are formed along two opposed parallel sides. When installed, the legs of the tile rest on shoulders 126 formed along the tracks, as shown in
A shoulder 128 is formed above each leg 124 along the same opposed parallel sides 130 in the planar upper surface of the deck tile. A track cover lock 140 extends along and over the track between adjacent arched deck tiles. In the embodiment shown, the track cover lock includes two depending legs 142 having a hook 144 (shown more particularly in
The arch deck tiles can be made of any suitable material. In one embodiment, the arch deck tiles are formed of a composite material having a core of foam, balsa wood or other suitable core material covered with, for example, a fabric of E-glass or S-glass and a vinyl ester or phenolic resin system. In one embodiment, the arch deck tiles and cover locks can be readily formed by a pultrusion process and cut to length.
A further embodiment of a flat deck tile 160 suitable for use with a raised frame 162 is illustrated in
In one embodiment, two types of elongated S-clip are employed. One S-clip 172, illustrated in
To install a deck tile, the single piece S-clip 172 is used first. One slot 184 of the S-clip is placed over a corresponding lip of a horizontal member. The shoulder 169 of a deck tile 160 is then slid into the other slot 186. See
The flat deck tiles can be made of any suitable material. In one embodiment, the flat deck tiles are formed of a composite material having a core of foam, balsa wood or other suitable core material covered with, for example, a fabric of E-glass or S-glass and a vinyl ester or phenolic resin system. In one embodiment, the flat deck tiles can be readily formed by a pultrusion process and cut to length.
The invention is not to be limited by what has been particularly shown and described, except as indicated by the appended claims.
This application claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. § 119(e) of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/810,337, filed on Jun. 2, 2006, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein.
The work leading to the invention received support from the United States federal government under SBIR Grant, Contract No. N00167-03-C-0015. The federal government may have certain rights in this invention.
Number | Date | Country | |
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60810337 | Jun 2006 | US |