A vehicle lift is a device operable to lift a vehicle such as a car, truck, bus, etc. Some vehicle lifts operate by positioning two runways at or near a shop floor level. The vehicle may be then driven or rolled onto the runways, allowing the runways to support the vehicle. The underside of each runway may be attached to a plurality of powered or manually actuated lifting assemblies. The lifting assemblies may be actuated to raise the runways and the vehicle to a desired height. Afterward, the vehicle may then be lowered once the user has completed his or her task requiring the vehicle lift. In some cases, the lifting assemblies may comprise a single elongated member which may rotate relative to the floor to pivot the runways upwardly. Because of the rotational motion of the lifting assemblies, some horizontal motion of the runways may be encountered. In other cases, the lifting assemblies may comprise a plurality of linkages which pivot relative to one another to cause the runways to rise upwardly, similar to a pair of scissors.
Examples of vehicle lift devices and related concepts are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,983,196, entitled “Electronically Controlled Vehicle Lift and Vehicle Services System,” issued Jan. 3, 2006, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; U.S. Pat. No. 6,763,916, entitled “Method and Apparatus for Synchronizing a Vehicle Lift,” issued Jul. 20, 2004, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; U.S. Pat. No. 6,601,430, entitled “Jack with Elevatable Platform,” issued Aug. 5, 2003, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; U.S. Pat. No. 6,484,554, entitled “Portable Lift and Straightening Platform,” issued Nov. 26, 2002, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; U.S. Pat. No. 6,269,676, entitled “Portable Lift and Straightening Platform,” issued Aug. 7, 2001, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; U.S. Pat. No. 6,059,263, entitled “Automotive Alignment Lift,” issued May 9, 2000, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; U.S. Pat. No. 5,199,686, entitled “Non-Continuous Base Ground Level Automotive Lift System,” issued Apr. 6, 1993, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; U.S. Pat. No. 5,190,122, entitled “Safety Interlock System,” issued Mar. 2, 1993, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; U.S. Pat. No. 5,096,159, entitled “Automotive Lift System,” issued Mar. 17, 1992, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; and U.S. Pub. No. 2012/0048653, entitled “Multi-Link Automotive Alignment Lift,” published Mar. 1, 2012, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein.
Vehicle lifts require substantial structural and/or mechanical support for the lift device itself and the weight of the vehicle being lifted. Some lift systems have that support above ground, while others have it below ground. With in-ground systems, a pit is typically constructed to contain the support.
In some in-ground systems, the lift support frame assemblies are attached to freshly poured concrete pit wall sections that can take multiple concrete pours to construct. Some require extensive framing for the concrete walls, and they may involve assembling block walls and filling voids with concrete. With all of these methods, the ground in which the pit is constructed is typically dug out substantially wider than the concrete structure so that personnel can safely position themselves in the trench to build the structure. The extra space must then be backfilled, and both the additional removal of earth and the backfilling process can weaken the area around the pit.
While a variety of concrete pits have been made and used, it is believed that no one prior to the inventor(s) has made or used an invention as described herein.
It is believed the present invention will be better understood from the following description of certain examples taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, in which like reference numerals identify the same elements and in which:
The drawings are not intended to be limiting in any way, and it is contemplated that various embodiments of the invention may be carried out in a variety of other ways, including those not necessarily depicted in the drawings. The accompanying drawings, incorporated in and forming a part of the specification, illustrates several aspects of the present invention, and together with the description serves to explain the principles of the invention; it being understood, however, that this invention is not limited to the precise arrangements shown.
The following description of certain examples of the invention should not be used to limit the scope of the present invention. Other examples, features, aspects, embodiments, and advantages of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following description, which is by way of illustration, one of the best modes contemplated for carrying out the invention. As will be realized, the invention is capable of other different and obvious aspects and implementations, all without departing from the invention. Accordingly, the drawing and description should be regarded as illustrative and not restrictive in nature.
In the illustrated embodiments, an in-ground jack frame assembly is placed atop precast cured concrete pit sections. The benefits of this approach include that there is no need to put a person in the trench, so the required excavation, slab cutting, benching, etc. is substantially reduced, yielding a great deal of cost and time savings. Various implementations of the system and methods described herein reduce construction waste, minimize site disturbance by the installation, and are better adapted for LEED buildings.
Precast wall piece 130 is a box with an open top 132 and open bottom 134. The top and bottom edges of wall piece 130 have complementary components with the edges of precast slab 110 and the wall piece 130′ that will sit on top of it to form suitable interfaces, preferably waterproof, tongue-and-groove connections. The height of each wall piece 130, 130′, and upper precast wall piece 140 is selected so that the top of upper precast wall piece 140 reaches floor level, which might be any height above precast slab 110 and might be reached by combination of any number of (one or more) precast wall pieces 130, 130′, 140. In this illustrated embodiment, upper precast wall piece 140 has top edge 142 that is preferably adapted to interface with jack frame 150 as will occur to those skilled in the art.
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With upper precast wall 240 set in place,
In some embodiments, one or more wall pieces 230, 240 are plumbed internally to allow for routing of electronic, hydraulic, water, or other service connections as desired.
Precast base 310 includes a mating feature 320 substantially similar to mating feature 220 described above. Additionally, precast wall piece 330 includes a complementary mating feature 332 substantially similar to mating feature 232 described above. Mating feature 332 is located on a bottom portion of precast wall piece 330. Mating feature 332 is configured to couple with mating feature 320 of precast base 310 such that precast wall piece 330 may couple with precast base 310 when wall piece 330 is properly placed above base 310.
Precast wall piece 330 also includes a mating feature 334 substantially similar to mating feature 234 described above. Mating feature 334 is located on a top portion of precast wall 330. Upper precast wall 340 includes a complementary mating feature 344 substantially similar to mating feature 244 described above. Mating feature 344 is located on a bottom portion of upper precast wall 340. Mating feature 344 is configured to couple with mating feature 334 of precast wall piece 330 such that upper precast wall 340 may couple with precast wall piece 330 when upper precast wall 340 is properly placed above precast wall piece 330.
In the current example, mating features 320, 332, 334, 344 are formed with complementary tongue-and-groove relationships as described above. However, any suitable complementary mating features may be used as would be apparent to one having ordinary skill in the art in view of the teachings herein. For example, mating features 320, 332, 334, 344 may have a complementary sawtooth geometry, or a complementary dovetail geometry.
Upper precast wall 340 includes a top edge 342 substantially similar to top edge 342 described above. Therefore, mechanical assembly 350 (see
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Upper precast wall 340, precast wall piece 330, and precast base 310 may each include a precast coating 304 (see
Upper precast wall 340, precast wall piece 330, and precast base 310 each include lifting features 360 unitarily formed in or attached to a respective surface. Lifting features 360 may be precast into the structures of upper precast wall 340, precast wall piece 330, and precast base 310. Alternatively, lifting features 360 may be unitarily coupled after the precast structures are formed. Lifting features 360 are sufficiently connected to upper precast wall 340, precast wall piece 330, and precast base 310 such that a hoist or crane may couple with lifting features 360 and lift the weight of respective base 310 or walls 330, 340. Therefore, the addition of lifting features 360 may provide an easy method of coupling base 310 or walls 340 with a hoist or crane for placement of base 310 and walls 340 into proper position within trench T. Lifting features 360 may in turn make proper placement of base 310 and walls 340 easier to accomplish. In the current example, lifting features 360 are made of lifting hooks (such as A-anchors available from Concrete Accessories of GA, Inc. of Duluth, Ga.) anchored into base 310 and walls 330, 340. However, brackets defining slots, cutouts for removable placement of support beams or straps, or any other suitable structure may be used as lifting features 360 as would be apparent to one having ordinary skill in the art in view of the teachings herein. In the current example, lifting features 360 are located on an exterior of base 310 and walls 330, 340. However, lifting features 360 may be placed in any suitable location for coupling with a hoist or crane as would be apparent to one having ordinary skill in the art in view of the teachings herein. For example, lifting features 360 may be located on interior walls 346, 336 of walls 340, 330.
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While two internal plumbing lines 370 are used in the current example, any suitable number of internal plumbing lines 370 may be incorporated into pit structure 300 as will be apparent to one having ordinary skill in the art in view of the teachings herein. Additionally, in the current example, internal plumbing lines 370 extend all the way from top edge 342 to precast base 310, but this is merely optional. Internal plumbing lines 370 may extend any suitable length from at or near top edge 342 as would be apparent to one having ordinary skill in the art in view of the teachings herein. For example, internal plumbing lines 370 may terminate within upper precast wall 340 of precast wall piece 330. Internal plumbing lines 370 may be lined with an electrical chase member 372 to help further insulate electrical wiring.
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Hydraulic pump assembly 400 is connected to a hydraulic line 402 which extends into internal plumbing line 370. As will be described in greater detail below, hydraulic line 402 may connect hydraulic pump assembly 400 with various components of vehicle lift system 700 in order to actuate vehicle lift system 700 within pit structure 300. Hydraulic pump assembly 400 may be activated and deactivated by commands sent from control system 500 via electrical wiring 306. Hydraulic pump assembly 400 may include any number of suitable components required to actuate a vehicle lift system 700 as would be apparent to one having ordinary skill in the art in view of the teachings herein.
Air compressor assembly 600 is connected to an air line 602, which also extends into internal plumbing line 370. Air line 602 may connect to various components of vehicle lift assembly 700 in order to selectively activate and deactivate any suitable type of safety locking mechanism of vehicle lift assembly 700. Air compressor assembly 600 may be activated and deactivated by commands sent from control system 500 via electrical wiring 306.
Low-voltage electrical box 790 is connected to electrical wiring 306 extending within electrical chase member 372 and internal plumbing line 370. While not directly shown in
Hydraulic cylinder 702 is connected with two hydraulic lines 402 on opposite ends of cylinder 702. Hydraulic lines 402 run through internal plumbing line 370. It should be understood that hydraulic lines 402 are also connected to hydraulic pump assembly 400. Therefore, an operator may activate hydraulic pump assembly 400 via control system 500 in order to pump hydraulic fluid within hydraulic cylinder 702, thereby raising or lowering rod 704 and vehicle engagement member 706 relative to pit structure 300 and hydraulic cylinder 702 (as shown between
Vehicle lift system 700 is also connected to an air line 602. Air line 602 runs through internal plumbing line 370. It should be understood that air line 602 is also connected to air compressor assembly 600. Therefore, control system 500 may activate air compressor assembly 600 to send compressed air to vehicle lift system 700 via air line 602. This may selectively activate/deactivate any mechanical locking mechanism designed to prevent inadvertent lowering of rod 704 relative to hydraulic cylinder 702, or it may achieve other goals as will occur to one having ordinary skill in the art in view of the teachings herein. Any suitable locking system may be used as would be apparent to one having ordinary skill in the art in view of the teachings herein.
It should be understood that any one or more of the teachings, expressions, embodiments, examples, etc. described herein may be combined with any one or more of the other teachings, expressions, embodiments, examples, etc. that are described herein. The above-described teachings, expressions, embodiments, examples, etc. should therefore not be viewed in isolation relative to each other. Various suitable ways in which the teachings herein may be combined will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art in view of the teachings herein. Such modifications and variations are intended to be included within the scope of the claims.
It should also be understood that the teachings herein may be readily applied to various kinds of lifts. By way of example only, the teachings herein may be readily applied to platform lifts, material lifts, man lifts, etc. The teachings herein may also be readily applied to robotic leg assemblies, adjustable work stations, and shock absorber systems. Various suitable ways in which the teachings herein may be incorporated into such systems and assemblies will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art. Similarly, various other kinds of systems and assemblies in which the teachings herein may be incorporated will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art.
Having shown and described various embodiments of the present invention, further adaptations of the methods and systems described herein may be accomplished by appropriate modifications by one of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the scope of the present invention. Several of such potential modifications have been mentioned, and others will be apparent to those skilled in the art. For instance, the examples, embodiments, geometrics, materials, dimensions, ratios, steps, and the like discussed above are illustrative and are not required. Accordingly, the scope of the present invention should be considered in terms of the following claims and is understood not to be limited to the details of structure and operation shown and described in the specification and drawings.
This application claims priority to and is a non-provisional of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/199,740, filed Jul. 31, 2015, with title “Precast Concrete Pit,” and is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/225,027, filed Aug. 1, 2016, with title “Precast Concrete Pit.”
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Parent | 15225027 | Aug 2016 | US |
Child | 15414361 | US |