AU2014100669A4 - Adjustable platform for a structure - Google Patents

Abstract

Abstract A level adjustable platform 1 for a structure including a pair of generally horizontally aligned and spaced support piles 2. Each pile includes an attachment cap 3 for attaching and anchoring the pile to a respective foundation (not shown), a load bearing support head 4 and a height adjuster 5 providing adjustment of the displacement between the respective support head 4 with respect to the respective attachment cap 3 thereby providing relative vertical height adjustment. The platform also including horizontal spreader beam 6 extending along a longitudinal beam axis between each pile 2 and supported by the load bearing support heads 4. Each pile 2 is also provided with longitudinal adjustment means 7 for adjusting the longitudinal position of the spreader beam along the beam axis between said piles. Fig. 4 4 of 6 cr.o qL e EN

Description

- 1 Adjustable platform for a structure Field of the invention [0001] The present invention relates to foundations and bases for structures. [0002] The invention has been developed primarily as base for use in the construction industry and in particular for relocatable buildings and will be described hereinafter with reference to this application. However, it will be appreciated that the invention is not limited to this field of use. For example, the invention may be applied to providing bases for supporting other types of structures including, houses, platforms, stadiums or other suitable applications whether they are intended for relocatable or more permanent use. Background of the invention [0003] The following discussion of the prior art is intended to place the invention in an appropriate technical context and enable the associated advantages to be fully understood. However, any discussion of the prior art throughout the specification should not be considered as an admission that such art is widely known or forms part of the common general knowledge in the field. [0004] It is commonplace when erecting or installing prefabricated, demountable and/or relocatable structures to first construct a foundation of piles or support columns on which the partially or fully completed structure can be lowered either wholly or in sections. The relative heights and positions of these support columns will generally have a significant bearing on the position, height and level of the structure. Moreover, the relative levels of the piles must usually be matched to support points on the structure bottom or chassis so as to avoid subjecting the structure to undue bending forces and/or instability in situ. It will be appreciated that in most cases, and for most structures, this simply means that all the piles are set horizontally level at the same height. [0005] Traditional techniques of forming piles require the careful construction of permanent masonry or concrete columns or setting piles at the required heights. However the permanent nature of such piers and difficulty in constructing them at the exact height is incongruous with the temporary nature of relocatable structures. Accordingly, nowadays it is common to form columns by either utilising a screw pile or by attaching a steel support column to a concrete -2 bored pier or substrate. Such columns often include a vertical adjustability so that the height of each can be set generally and adjusted more accurately. [0006] However the system is not without drawbacks. First, the adjusting the height of each pile can be time consuming because they must be levelled individually but matched collectively. Secondly each pier provides only a small point support thereby requiring accuracy when lowering the structure into position. There is little tolerance for lateral misalignment. [0007] In addition, piers are designed to withstand compressive vertical loads, but are comparatively weak when loaded laterally. Any horizontal miss alignment of the structure during installation can lead to uneven pier loading or overloading and/or lateral forces being applied to the piers which may result in damage to the piers. Furthermore, wind loads on an installed structure can also load piers unevenly and laterally. [0008] It is an object of the present invention to overcome or ameliorate at least one of the disadvantages of the prior art, or to provide a useful alternative. Summary of the invention [0009] According to a first aspect of the invention there is provided a level adjustable platform for a structure, said platform, including: a first pair of generally horizontally aligned and spaced support piles, each support pile including: an attachment cap for attaching and anchoring the pile to a respective foundation; and a load bearing support head, and a height adjuster providing displacement adjustment between the respective support head with respect to the respective attachment cap thereby providing relative vertical height adjustability; a horizontal spreader beam extending along a longitudinal beam axis between each pile and supported by said load bearing support heads thereby providing a generally linear support platform; and axial adjustment means for providing longitudinal adjustment of the spreader beam along the beam axis between said piles. [0010] Preferably, the height adjuster includes: an elongate axially extendible shaft connecting the support head to and spacing it -3 from the attachment cap; and selective locking means for locking the shaft at a selected extension to provide selective variable spacing between said head and attachment cap and thereby height adjustment in use. [0011] Preferably, a first end of said elongate shaft is fixedly attached to the support head and wherein a selective locking means is held by said attachment cap. [0012] Preferably, the selective locking means includes an adjustable collar. [0013] Preferably, the adjustable collar is threadably mated to support shaft thereby providing threaded travelling adjustment of the collar along said elongate support shaft. [0014] Preferably, the attachment cap includes a top plate, through which the shaft passes and a bracket formation for attaching the cap to a foundation. [0015] Preferably, the support head includes a U-shaped retaining cradle for receiving and retaining the spreader beam. [0016] Preferably, the retaining cradle allows longitudinal float of the spreader beam along the beam axis thereby providing axial adjustment means. [0017] Preferably, the cradle includes a horizontal support bed attached to the end of the shaft and a pair of parallel, side plates extending upwardly from opposite sides of the support bed. [0018] Preferably, corresponding slotted apertures in the side plates align with a bore in the spreader beam to receive a pin faster or bolt for securing the beam to the support head. [0019] Preferably, each foundation includes a screw pile, concrete footing and/or a masonry, concrete or steel pier. [0020] In another aspect, the invention provides including two or more generally linear platforms, said linear platforms disposed generally parallel to one another. [0021] Reference throughout this specification to "one embodiment", "some embodiments" or "an embodiment" means that a particular feature, structure or characteristic described in -4 connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present invention. Thus, appearances of the phrases "in one embodiment", "in some embodiments" or "in an embodiment" in various places throughout this specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment, but may. Furthermore, the particular features, structures or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner, as would be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art from this disclosure, in one or more embodiments. Brief description of the drawings [0022] A preferred form of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: [0023] Figure 1 is a perspective view of an adjustable platform system according to the invention; [0024] Figure 2 is a perspective view of the adjustable platform system shown in Figure 1; [0025] Figure 3 is a top plan view of the adjustable platform system shown in Figure 1; [0026] Figure 4 is a side view of the adjustable platform system shown in Figure 1; [0027] Figure 5 is a detailed partial side view displaying one pier of the adjustable platform system shown in Figure 1; [0028] Figure 6 is a detailed sectional partial end view of one pier the adjustable platform system shown in Figure 1; [0029] Figure 7 is a detailed end view of the support head component; [0030] Figure 8 is a detailed side view of the support head component shown in Figure 7; and [0031] Figures 9 to 12 are schematic plan views of the sequence of constructing a platform for a structure in accordance with the invention.

-5 Detailed description of preferred embodiments [0032] Referring to Figure 1 a preferred form of the invention includes a level adjustable platform 1 for a structure. The platform 1 includes a pair of generally horizontally aligned and spaced support piles 2. Each pile includes an attachment cap 3 for attaching and anchoring the pile to a respective foundation (not shown), a load bearing support head 4 and a height adjuster 5 providing adjustment of the displacement between the respective support head 4 with respect to the respective attachment cap 3 thereby providing relative vertical height adjustment. The platform also including horizontal spreader beam 6 extending along a longitudinal beam axis A between each pile 2 and supported by the load bearing support heads 4, thereby providing a generally linear support platform for supporting a structure. Each pile 2 is also provided with longitudinal adjustment means 7 for adjusting the longitudinal position of the spreader beam along the beam axis between said piles. [0033] Preferably, the linear support platform is used in combination with one or more generally parallel, like linear support platforms disposed to construct a planar support platform for a structure such as a relocatable building. [0034] In alternative embodiments, more that one linear support platform may be configured in alternative configurations to form a planar support platform. Such configurations include square, rectangular, triangular or other polygonal shape, star or cross shape or any other shape where by the linear support platforms lie on at least one common plane. [0035] As previously noted, whilst the invention has been developed for use with relocatable, generally prefabricated buildings and described with reference to this application, it is not limited to this narrow field of use and may equally be used in providing foundation support for other types of buildings and or structures, whether temporary, permanent or semi permanent. In the Figures, a pair of chassis rails CR, are shown to illustratively indicate the chassis of a building or structure. However these rails do not form part of the invention per see. [0036] As illustrated in the embodiment shown in the Figures, it is preferable that each of the piles 2 includes a height adjuster 5 thereby providing adjustment of the relative vertical height of the respective support head 4 with respect to the other support head. However in alternative embodiments only one pile is provided with height adjusting functionality.

-6 [0037] Detailed views of a support pile 2 in accordance with the invention are shown in Figure 5 and 6. In this embodiment the height adjuster 5 includes an elongate axially extendible shaft 8 connecting the connecting the support head 4 to, and spacing it from the attachment cap 3; and selective locking means in the form of an adjustable collar 9, for locking the shaft at a selected extension to provide selective variable spacing between said head and attachment cap and thereby height adjustment. In use, the shaft is vertically orientated such that a first, upper end 10 is fixedly attached to the support head 4. Weight force of the structure borne by the support head 4 is passed compressively through the shaft 8 to the adjustable collar 9 which is held by the attachment cap 3, and thence to the foundation on which the pile is attached. [0038] Referring to the sectioned view in Figure 6, the attachment cap 3 includes a top plate 11, through which the shaft 8 passes and a bracket formation 12 for attaching the cap 3 to the foundation. The bracket in this embodiment has a circumferential side wall 13 extending downwardly from a peripheral edge of the top plate 11 thereby forming a cap to surround the end of the foundation pier, post or pole. Apertures 14 are provided for fixedly pinning the cap to the foundation by pins bolts or the like. [0039] In this embodiment, the shaft 8 and collar are is threadably mated thereby providing threaded travelling adjustment of the collar along the shaft 8 and selective height adjustment and locking of the shaft and support head 4 with respect to the attachment cap and foundation. Other methods of providing vertical adjustment and locking of the shaft may also be used. For instance a wedge collar, locking cam, pins or ratchet system may easily be applied to provide similar functionality. [0040] Figures 7 and 8 respectively show front and side views of the support head / shaft which are fixed together as an integral component. In particular, the support head includes a U-shaped retaining cradle 15 for receiving and retaining the spreader beam 6. The cradle 15 includes a horizontal support bed 16 attached to the end of the shaft 8 and a pair of parallel, side plates 17 extending upwardly from opposite sides of the support bed 16. An open top and ends of the cradle 15 allow the spreader beam 6 to be dropped into the cradle and retailed laterally by the side plates. [0041] In use, as seen in Figure 6, the spreader beam 6 fits snugly within the U-shaped cradle between side plates 17 however is allowed to float longitudinally thereby providing longitudinal adjustment means for centering the spreader beam between the pair of support -7 piles and/or longitudinal adjustment along the spreader beam axis A as required. Corresponding slotted apertures 18 in the side plates 17 align with a bore in the spreader beam to receive a pin faster or bolt 19 (Figure 6) for securing the beam 6 to the support head 4 once longitudinal adjustment of the beam is complete. [0042] The invention may typically be implemented in the following way. First, an array of foundation points are prepared at a predetermined site on which the building or structure is to be located. The foundations may include screw piles, masonry or concrete columns, posts, or any other type of foundation or footing. For most relocatable structures the foundation points will be set at similar levels to match support points on the structure chassis. Preferably the foundation points are laid out in a square grid pattern as shown in top plan view in Figure 9. The grid comprising paired foundation points 30, 30' set a distance dapart corresponding to marginally less than the span of a spreader beam. [0043] As seen in Figure 10, an adjustable support pile 2 according to the invention is then secured by its respective attachment cap 3 to each foundation point. The piles are set in pairs and a spreader beam 6 dropped into the respective U-shaped support cradles on each support head 4 of a first pair of support piles 30, 30'. [0044] The spreader beam 6 of this first pair is set at the required height by rotating the threaded collar on the attachment cap of one of the support piles to raise or lower the thread support shaft and support head. Once one side of the beam is at the required height, it is a simple matter to level the beam with a level tool by raising or lowering the height adjuster on the other paired pile. The spreader beam is now at the correct height and set level. [0045] The beam can also be adjusted longitudinally by sliding it on it longitudinal axis in the cradle so that it is centered between the pair of piles or adjusted toward one pile or the other as required. Finally, the beam 6 is fixed in position by inserting a bolt through the slots on the cradle side plates and the aligned holes in the spreader beam. This has the effect of tying the two piles together and providing them with a greater measure of structural rigidity than they would have as individual piles particularly on the longitudinal beam axis. [0046] Once the first beam in set, it is possible to transfer the height to the next adjacent pair and respective spreader beam 6' (Figure 11) by placing a level tool laterally across the spreader beams above adjacent piles and using the height adjuster to match the new beams height to the first. The adjacent beam is then levelled and fixed in the same manner. In this -8 way the height of the first spreader beam can be transferred across the entire array to form a planar platform of spreader beams as seen in Figure 12. [0047] It will be appreciated that the invention provides a comparatively quick and easy method of constructing a support platform. Using a spreader beam to link the piles in pairs allows for adjustment in both the horizontal and vertical planes whereas other methods only allow for vertical adjustment. In addition the paired piles provide for increased installation tolerances over single pile adjustment making it comparatively faster to level and ready the platform for structure installation. [0048] Another advantage is that the system provides a comparatively large level platform with some structural rigidity. A relocatable building or structure can be placed with less accuracy and less risk of damaging the foundations or building than is possible with simple individual support piles. [0049] The invention has been developed to comply with all relevant codes while maintaining a relatively easy installation process. Alternative methods require a very arduous installation process and more often than not are unable to be installed with the dimensional accuracy required to meet the relative structural codes. [0050] In the description provided herein, numerous specific details are set forth. However, it is understood that embodiments of the invention may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known methods, structures and techniques have not been shown in detail in order not to obscure an understanding of this description. [0051] Thus, while there has been described what are believed to be the preferred embodiments of the invention, those skilled in the art will recognize that other and further modifications may be made thereto without departing from the spirit of the invention, and it is intended to claim all such changes and modifications as falling within the scope of the invention.

Claims (12)

1. A level adjustable platform for a structure, said platform, including: a first pair of generally horizontally aligned and spaced support piles, each support pile including: an attachment cap for attaching and anchoring the pile to a respective foundation; and a load bearing support head, and a height adjuster providing displacement adjustment between the respective support head with respect to the respective attachment cap thereby providing relative vertical height adjustability; a horizontal spreader beam extending along a longitudinal beam axis between each pile and supported by said load bearing support heads thereby providing a generally linear support platform; and axial adjustment means for providing longitudinal adjustment of the spreader beam along the beam axis between said piles.

2. A platform according to claim 1 wherein the height adjuster includes: an elongate axially extendible shaft connecting the support head to and spacing it from the attachment cap; and selective locking means for locking the shaft at a selected extension to provide selective variable spacing between said head and attachment cap and thereby height adjustment in use.

3. A platform according to claim 2 wherein a first end of said elongate shaft is fixedly attached to the support head and wherein a selective locking means is held by said attachment cap.

4. A platform according to claim 3 wherein the selective locking means includes an adjustable collar.

5. A platform according to claim 4 wherein the adjustable collar is threadably mated to support shaft thereby providing threaded travelling adjustment of the collar along said elongate support shaft. -10

6. A platform according to according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the attachment cap includes a top plate, through which the shaft passes and a bracket formation for attaching the cap to a foundation.

7. A platform according to according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the support head includes a U-shaped retaining cradle for receiving and retaining the spreader beam.

8. A platform according to claim 7 wherein the retaining cradle allows longitudinal float of the spreader beam along the beam axis thereby providing axial adjustment means.

9. A platform according to claim 7 wherein the cradle includes a horizontal support bed attached to the end of the shaft and a pair of parallel, side plates extending upwardly from opposite sides of the support bed.

10. A platform according to claim 9 wherein corresponding slotted apertures in the side plates align with a bore in the spreader beam to receive a pin faster or bolt for securing the beam to the support head.

11. A platform according to any one of the preceding claims wherein each foundation includes a screw pile, concrete footing and/or a masonry, concrete or steel pier.

12. A level adjustable planar platform for a structure including two or more generally linear platforms in accordance with any one of the preceding claims said linear platforms disposed generally parallel to one another.