Patent Application
20110271633
This application relates to novel structural elements and arrays, and in particular, to structural elements and arrays that can be connected together to form an omni-extensible array.
Any useful physical structure, device or material (hereinafter “structure) must be adapted so that the structure can withstand the forces that are applied to that structure. Although various structures have been developed over the years for building materials or other applications these structures are generally limited by weakness inherent in their geometry.
It is desirable to provide structural members that provide enhanced structural integrity, high strength-to-weight ratios, and the ability to adapt to various needs associated with a particular structural design.
In one embodiment, a plurality of structural members are configured to be coupled together to form an array. Each structural member comprises a top portion having a plurality of top extending members spaced apart from one another and a bottom portion having a plurality of bottom extending members spaced apart from one another, the top extending members and bottom extending members being vertically offset from each other. The top portion of each structural member is configured for coupling to the bottom portion of another structural member, and each top extending member of a structural member is configured to be coupled to a bottom extending member of another structural member.
In certain embodiments, each structural member can comprises three top extending members and three bottom extending members. The first and second openings can be offset along a central axis of the structural member by about 60 degrees. In other embodiments, each top extending member and bottom extending member can comprise a connector-receiving opening and the plurality of structural members can comprise a plurality of connecting members. Each connecting member can have a first end that is received into a connector-receiving opening of one top extending member and a second end that is received into a connector-receiving opening of one bottom extending member. Each structural member can be substantially solid or substantially hollow.
In other embodiments, each of the plurality of top extending members can have a first opening and each of the plurality of bottom extending members can have a second opening, and a passageway can extend between each first opening and a corresponding, offset second opening. Each first opening of a first structural member can be fluidly connected to only one second opening of the first structural member. At least one passageway can have a convoluted path between the first opening and the second opening. At least one passageway can have a restricted cross-section area along a portion of the passageway. Each structural member can have three first openings and three second openings.
In other embodiments, each of the three first openings can have a centerpoint and the three centerpoints of the first openings can define a first equilateral triangle, and each of the three second openings can have a centerpoint and the three centerpoints of the second openings can define a second equilateral triangle. The first equilateral triangle can be larger than the second equilateral triangle. Each of the first openings of the structural members can be defined by an extending portion and each of the second openings of the structural member can be configured to receive an extending portion of another structural member at least partially into the second opening to couple the two structural members together. Each extending portion of a first structural member can be configured to be received at least partially into the second opening of a different structural member, such that three extending portions of a first structural member can be coupled to three other structural members.
In other embodiments, a movement restricting member to restrict relative movement of two coupled structural members when at least one extending portion is received in the second opening of another structural member. The movement restricting member can have a lip on one or both of the extending portions and the second openings.
In another embodiment, a plurality of structural members can be configured to be coupled together to form an array. Each structural member can comprise a top face having three first joining members arranged such that a plurality of centerpoints of the first joining members collectively define a first equilateral triangle, and a bottom face having three second joining members such that a plurality of center points of the second joining members collectively define a second equilateral triangle. At least some of the first joining members of the structural members can be configured to mate with at least some of the second joining members of other structural members to couple the plurality of structural members together.
In other embodiments, the first and second equilateral triangles can be offset from one another along a central axis of the structural member by an angle of about 60 degrees. The first equilateral triangle can be larger than the second equilateral triangle. Each first joining member of a first structural member can be configured to be joined with one of the second joining members of a different structural member, such that the three first joining members of the first structural member are coupled to three other structural members.
In other embodiments, the first joining members can include extending portions that extend from the top face of the structural members and the second joining members can include openings that are sized to receive the first joining members of another structural member. A movement restricting member can be provided to restrict relative movement of two coupled structural members when at least one extending portion is received in the second opening of another structural member. The movement restricting member can comprise a lip on one or both of the extending portions and the second openings.
In another embodiment, an omni-extensible array of structural elements can be provided. The array can comprise a first layer of structural elements and a second layer of structural elements. The structural elements can include a top face having three first joining members arranged such that a plurality of centerpoints of the first joining members collectively define a first equilateral triangle and a bottom face having three second joining members such that a plurality of center points of the second joining members collectively define a second equilateral triangle. At least some of the first joining members can be configured to mate with at least some of the second joining members to couple the first layer of structural elements to the second layer of structural elements. Each structural element in the array can be coupled to three different structural elements in a layer above the structural element and three different structural elements in a layer below the structural element.
In other embodiments, the first and second equilateral triangles of each structural member can be offset from one another with respect to a central axis of the structural member by an angle of about 60 degrees. In other embodiments, the first equilateral triangle can be larger than the second equilateral triangle.
The foregoing and other objects, features, and advantages of the disclosed embodiments will become more apparent from the following detailed description, which proceeds with reference to the accompanying figures.
The following description is exemplary in nature and is not intended to limit the scope, applicability, or configuration of the invention in any way. Various changes to the described embodiment may be made in the function and arrangement of the elements described herein without departing from the scope of the invention.
Although the operations of exemplary embodiments of the disclosed method may be described in a particular, sequential order for convenient presentation, it should be understood that disclosed embodiments can encompass an order of operations other than the particular, sequential order disclosed. For example, operations described sequentially may in some cases be rearranged or performed concurrently. Further, descriptions and disclosures provided in association with one particular embodiment are not limited to that embodiment, and may be applied to any embodiment disclosed.
Moreover, for the sake of simplicity, the attached figures may not show the various ways (readily discernable, based on this disclosure, by one of ordinary skill in the art) in which the disclosed system, method, and apparatus can be used in combination with other systems, methods, and apparatuses. Additionally, the description sometimes uses terms such as “produce” and “provide” to describe the disclosed method. These terms are high-level abstractions of the actual operations that can be performed. The actual operations that correspond to these terms can vary depending on the particular implementation and are, based on this disclosure, readily discernible by one of ordinary skill in the art.
As shown in
Each of bodies 132, 134, 136 is preferably generally hollow so that each defines a passageway that fluidly connects the respective top and bottom openings of structural member 100. Thus, each opening in a top surface 110 of structural member 100 is fluidly connected to a respective opening in a bottom surface 120 of structural member 100. For example, as shown in
As discussed above, structural member 100 preferably defines a plurality of passageways between fluidly connected respective top openings (112, 114, 116) and bottom openings (122, 124, 126). Each body 132, 134, 136 is also preferably connected and/or structural integrated to each of the other bodies 132, 134, and 136 as shown in
An interior surface of the passageways can be formed in a variety of manners. The interior surface of one or more passageways can be generally smooth as shown in
Openings in the top and bottom surface that are fluidly connected are preferably offset from one another. This offset can provide structural integrity and strength to structural member 100. In addition, if structural member 100 is configured to allow fluids to flow between the top and bottom surfaces (e.g., through the passageways defined and/or provided through the structural member), the offset openings can be used to influence or modify the flow of the flowing element (e.g., gas, fluid, or flowable solids) through the passageways. For example, the offset can define a convoluted path between the openings in the top and bottom surfaces. Such a convoluted path can cause the flowing element to experience non-laminar flow between the top and bottom surfaces. Such non-laminar flow can provide various advantages, such as mixing or blending one or more fluids or other flowing elements. Additionally, at least a portion of one or more passageways can include a restricted cross-sectional area along the passageway to further affect the flow pattern of any flowable element moving through the passageway.
As shown in
Each top opening of a first structural member 100 can be configured so that it can be coupled with a bottom opening of a second structural member 100. In one embodiment, first, second, and third top openings 112, 114, 116 can be formed with a different diameter than first, second, and third bottom openings 122, 124, 126 to allow for one of the top or bottom openings to receive a bottom or top portion of another structure member therein to couple two or more structural members together. For example, as shown in
Thus, the inner diameter 168 of bottom portions 162, 164, 166 of structural member 100 can be sized to receive top extending portions 152, 154, 156 of another structural member 100 so that a plurality of structural members 100 can be coupled together. Since the top extending portions and bottom portions with openings cooperate with one another to join or couple a first structural member to a second structural member that is positioned above or below the first structural member, top extending portions and bottom portions are also referred to herein as joining members.
As shown in
If desired, a movement restricting member 159, such as a lip or ledge, can be provided on or adjacent to each top extending member 152, 154, 156. Movement restricting member 159 can act as a stop which restricts further relative movement between a top extending portion and a bottom portion when the top extending portion is fully received into the bottom portion. Similarly, as shown in
If desired, other movement restricting members can be used to secure a first structural member 100 to a second structural member 100. Although the movement restricting members 159, 169 described above restrict movement in only one direction (e.g., movement restricting member 159 restricts movement of the top extending portion into, but not out of, the bottom portion) other movement restricting members that restrict movement in both directions can be provided. For example, locking mechanisms such as a snap-fit configuration with a biased locking member could be used to more securely couple two structural members together.
Referring to
Array 400 also comprises at least two layers (e.g., rows) of structural members. Referring to
The omni-extensible pattern of structural members is also inherently stable and ordered. The stability is a result of the structural strength of the individual structural members and the array's ability to constrain a plurality of those members in each of the six-degrees of freedom (up, down, left, right, front, back) of the array. Moreover, as best seen in
Triangles are structurally strong geometric shapes and, therefore, it is desirable that the joining members be formed with generally triangular shapes as shown in
To further strengthen the structural member, the relative orientations of joining members (e.g., top extending portions and bottom portions that define openings for receiving the top extending portions) are preferably selected to produce a structure that generally follows the structure of a polyhedral array, as generally described in U.S. Patent Publication No. 2008/0040984, the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference.
Referring again to
In another embodiment, structural members can be substantially solid, rather than substantially hollow. For example, as shown in
The materials of the structural member can vary and be the same as the materials of the hollow members described above. One particularly useful material can be crumb rubber, which is readily available from recycled tire products. Crumb rubber can also be useful because it is relatively resilient and can provide a structure that is relatively elastic and, at the same time, very durable.
The arrays of structural members as described herein are desirably formed in a “structured and ordered” manner. That is, that each structural member in the array is positioned, placed, or otherwise formed in a non-random manner. The ordered nature of the array makes it predictable in both its structural integrity as well as in its ability to receive additional functional elements as discussed below. Structurally, the ordered nature of the array means that it will perform more predictably than structures that are formed with non-ordered structures (such as concrete). In addition, the ordered nature of the array results in a failure resistance that limits structural damage to the location of the damage, preventing it from spreading to other areas of the array. Accordingly, deformation, damage, and/or other failures can be localized and controlled, thereby maintaining the integrity of the array as a whole.
The material selection for the structural members described herein can include virtually any category of materials that is capable of being constructed into the required shapes. For example, plastics, metals, and wood products can generally be used to form the shapes required.
Furthermore, unlike many construction or structural materials, the array materials can be highly environmentally friendly and reusable. Because the array can be constructed by adding structural elements to the array without mixing materials, epoxies, or other binding agents, the array can also be deconstructed without destroying or damaging the materials of array. Accordingly, the structural members can be easily reused, increasing the environmental friendliness of the array and its components.
Of course, if reusability is not an issue, the array can also be more permanently constructed using epoxies or other binding agents. In addition to using epoxies or binding agents in the array itself, the array can also form a structural base for other permanent building materials. For example, concrete could be poured onto an array structure in order to increase the rigidity of the array structure and of the concrete. The open and permeable architecture of the array creates a structure that is easily filled with concrete or other hardening agents.
The permeability of the array results from the generally hollow configuration of each structural element. Thus, as long as the flowable matter (e.g., fluids, gas, flowable solids) is of a size that is small enough to pass through the passageways of the structural elements, the interconnected passageways of an array of structural members can permit and facilitate the passage of the flowable matter from one surface of the array (e.g., a top surface) to another surface (e.g., a bottom surface). Thus, the resulting configuration is an array that is permeable, breathable, and self draining. The permeability of the array renders it suitable for numerous uses, including, for example, pavement, driveways, marine applications, filtering processes, or any other micro- or mega-scale application in which flowable passageways are desirable. In addition, because of the available flowable passageways, the structural members described herein can be used in connection with heat exchangers to efficiently transfer heat from one medium to another. With the high surface area to volume, the structural members disclosed herein can be particularly well suited for such applications.
Moreover, functional elements can be positioned in the passageways of one or more structural members in various ways. For example, as noted above, the array can be filled at least in part with various materials to increase its structural integrity. Thus, one or more interconnected passageways can be filed with concrete or other fillable, hardening materials. These materials can be directed into the array via one or more passageways to further strengthen the array and/or restrict the flow of fluids or other flowable materials through the filled passageways. Thus, the flow patterns that result from the available open passageways in the array can be altered or changed as desired.
In addition to flow-restricting materials, such as concrete, other functional elements can be provided in or delivered through the passageways of the array. For example, filtering materials can be provided to filter particles or other matter from any flowable matter that can be received in the passageways of the array.
In addition, as noted above, the array is scalable in that the size of individual structural elements can be varied ranging from a very small size (e.g., measurable on the nano-scale) to a very large size (e.g., measurable in meters or larger).
In view of the many possible embodiments to which the principles of the disclosed invention may be applied, it should be recognized that the illustrated embodiments are only preferred examples of the invention and should not be taken as limiting the scope of the invention. Rather, the scope of the invention is defined by the following claims. I therefore claim as my invention all that comes within the scope and spirit of these claims.
