AU688358B2

AU688358B2 - Concrete slab insert

Info

Publication number: AU688358B2
Application number: AU74269/94A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Desmond Paton; Mark Vethaak
Original assignee: MICAHAM Pty Ltd
Current assignee: MICAHAM Pty Ltd
Priority date: 1993-10-01
Filing date: 1994-09-28
Publication date: 1998-03-12
Anticipated expiration: 2014-09-28
Also published as: AU7426994A

Description

AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION FOR A STANDARD PATENT Name of Applicant: MICAHAM PTY. LTD.

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0.00 0* 0* 0 0* Actual fnventor: Address for Service: Mark Vethaak Desmond Paton -~48-QuUeGn-Street, -Autr-a 1 -4YO Invention Title: CONCRETE SLAB INSERT Details of Associated Provisional Applications: Nos. PM1569 The following statement is a full description invention, including the best method of performing it us of this known to

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THIS INVENTION relates to inserts for concrete slabs which facilitate the installation of pipework therein. The invention is particularly concerned with arrangements which permit slab penetrating pipework to be cast in situ while simultaneously creating a void on the underside of the slab to enable pipework connections, such as pipe elbows to be fitted thereto so that the pipework can be installed close to the underside of the slab.

Previously, slab penetrating pipework comprised a copper section of pipework having support legs brazed thereto. The legs were nailed to the concrete defining formwork deck prior to the slab being poured. This arrangement has a number of disadvantages principal among 15 which are the inability to enable ready connection of pipework hard up against the bottom of the slab at the location of the slab penetrating pipework, and the appearance of protruding nails which were used to retain the support legs of the pipework.

In order to address these problems, various arrangements have been proposed, one of the most successful of which is the one described in Robertson's International Patent Application No. PCT/AU87/00129.

This comprises a hollow generally dish-shaped body which 25 is open at one end, means adjacent the open end of the body are adapted to be releasably secured to formwork defining a boundary for one side of the slab during the formation thereof. A tubular member extends into the body from the side thereof opposite the open end so that one end thereof is disposed within the body. The tubular member is adapted to extend from the body at least to the opposite side of the slab. The body is adapted to be anchored and thereby retained in the slab by the concrete when the latter hardens so as to define a space surrounding one end of said tubular member whereby the coupling of the tubular member to a further member is facilitated.

The problem with this arrangement, however, is r r o e 3 that it has to be manufactured from relatively thick copper due to the manufacturing process. This makes the product very expensive. Furthermore, it does not result in a particularly aesthetic result because the clouts used to hold it in place in the formwork, protrude when the formwork is removed.

Additionally, Robertson does not adequately address the problem of seepage water in the region of the pipe penetration.

10 It is therefore an object of the invention to provide an alternative arrangement which overcomes at least some of these problems of the Robinson invention and which provides the public with a useful choice.

According to the present invention, there is 15 provided a concrete slab insert for supporting a pipe end therein oriented S.transversely to the concrete slab; said insert comprising: an upwardly dished portion, with a bottom 20 proximal to the base of the slab, in use; the dished portion having an opening in its bottom for the pipe end which is inserted, in use, therethrough; and a cavity defining sleeve; said cavity defining sleeve depending from the bottom of the upwardly dished portion; said cavity defining sleeve supports the upwardly dished portion prior to formation of the concrete slab; and the cavity defining sleeve establishing a 1US cavity in the base of the slab at which the pipe end is accessible.

Preferably, the sleeve is releasably pressfitted to the dished portion to enable the sleeve to be removed from the dished portion once the slab has set.

In order to assist in such fitting, a release adhesive may be employed. There may, however, be instances where such separation is not required nor desirable, and in those instances the sleeve and dished portion can be formed as a single integral unit, or connected together 10 by welding, rivetting or the like.

Suitable means are provided to enable attachment of the sleeve to slab supporting framework.

These attachment means will usually comprise clouts, nails, screws, or the like which are inserted in a flange formed integrally with the bottom edge of the sleeve.

The concrete slab insert is suitably used with a bung which is located on the formwork axially of the oo0 pipe, for the purpose of accurately locating the position of the pipe on the formwork. This greatly facilitates the set-out for the pipework. The bung is also preferably designed to hold the pipe rigid when the slab is being poured. Means are suitably provided to fix the bung to the formwork. These means can comprise fixing pins such as nails vThich are inserted through the top of the bung into the formwork. The bung may be fabricated from a wide range of materials, preferably plastics materials such as polyethylene, polyurethane and polypropylene, as well as rubbers. The bung can also have 0. a wide range of shapes and sizes. A particularly preferred shape is a disc with a series of circular grooves of varying di&meters formed in one side thereof.

The purpose of such grooves is to locate and support the ends of varying diameter pipes. Another useful bung shape is a twin diameter disc shape wherein the smaller diameter disc portion is adapted in size to snugly fit within the end of the pipe to be supported and a larger diameter disc portion which overlaps the end diameter of the pipe.

The upwardly dished portion of the insert functions as a "puddle flange". This is the trade 2 terminology for a broad flat collar fitted to a pipe which is designed to catch any small quantities of fluid seepage that may occur at the top of the slab in the region of the pipe insert in the slab. Such seepage can be quite common around floor wastes.

The upwardly dished portion of the insert preferably has a circular configuration and the cavity defining sleeve has a truncated conical configuration; the upper end of the sleeve being dimensioned to be substantially commensurate with the dimension of the dished portion where it supports the dished portion. The sleeve suitably has an upper platform on which the dished portion is supported.

The upwardly dished portion of the insert also preferably has a substantially planar horizontal surface

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with an downwardly projecting collar which snugly fits around and supports the pipework, and an upwardly standing wall adjacent its perimeter. Such a construction not only serves to fully retain any seepage fluid but also adds considerable strength to the flange.

Strength characteristics are also significant from economic perspectives as a strengthened dished portion will mean that it can be manufactured with walls of lesser thickness. Since copper pipe-- are commonly used for slab penetrations, copper fitments will generally be called for. Copper, however, is relatively expensive but since the thickness of the sheet copper in the dished .portion can be quite thin, and appreciably thinner than *o :that of the aforementioned Robertson patent 602697, costs are not as high.

In practice it is also preferred if the perimeter wall has a rim to ensure firm retention of the dished portion within the concrete slab when the sleeve is removed.

The dished portion can, of course, also be manufactured from other materials, the most common of which is polyvinylchloride. Such a dished portion will often be utilised when the slab penetrating pipe is also .0.manufactured from polyvinylchloride. In fact it will be 25 the norm to have corresponding materials used for the pipe and the dished portion, whatever those materials might be.

Suitably, the sleeve is made from plastics material such as polyvinylchloride or h.d. polyethylene, and is sufficiently rigid in construction to enable its removal after the concrete has set.

The concrete slab insert according to the present invention has a number of advantages over the aforementioned Robertson patent 602,697; these being that applicant's insert is less expensive to manufacture, (ii) is easier to manufacture, (iii) has a built in puddle flange, (iv) is two units in one the upwardly dished portion can be used by itself in different ,I

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applications, has provision for a lifter, viz the bung, to enable the pipe to be lifted to a desired height and (vi) is more aesthetically pleasing the Robertson in' ion leaves the copper flange exposed, often distorted and with clouts hanging out of it after the formwork has been removed. The plastic sleeve could lend itself to being re-used.

A preferred embodiment of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:- Figure 1 is a cross-sectional view of an arrangement according to the present invention; Figure 2 is a plan view of the arrangement depicted in Figure 1; Figure 3 is a top perspective view of the arrangement depicted in Figure 1; Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view of the arrangement of Figure 1 in situ; and Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view showing the completed pipe penetration system.

In all the drawings, like reference numerals refer to like parts.

Referring firstly to Figures 1 3, the concrete slab insert comprises an upwardly dished portion 25 10, a sleeve 11. Associated bung 12, is provided to assist location of the pipe and insert.

The upwardly dished portion 10 is a copper dish of 0.55mm thickness having a downwardly extending inner collar 13 and an upstanding perimeter wall 14 with a horizontal retention ledge 15. The bottom edge of the collar includes an outwardly flared lip 17 to assist in retaining the sleeve in situ, that is, until it is set in the concrete slab. The resiliency of the flared lip will be such as to enable the sleeve to be easily parted therefrom.

The sleeve 11 is formed from injection moulded h.d. polyethylene or other suitable material, and has a uniform cross-section. The sleeve has a truncated

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L L _1 I conical shape and includes, at it's upper end, a platform 6 which supports the dished portion. The lower end of the sleeve has a lip 16 projecting horizontally which enables attachment to formwork by clouts 20 which extend through slotted apertures 9 therein. The sleeve and dished portion are held snugly together by frictional forces.

The bung 12 is a disc of moulded polyvinylchloride, or other suitable material, which has a series of annular grooves 7 to accommodate varying sized pipes (note: only the largest diameter groove is used for the illustrated slab insert A) centre aperture 8 is conveniently provided to enable fixing to formwork.

b. u Figure 4 illustrates the concrete slab insert and bung in situ before the slab is poured. The hung 12 is centred on the formwork 17 and fixed with a clout 18.

A slab peiietration copper pipe 19 is located over the bung, and the sleeve 11 and puddle flange 10 are arranged as shown. Clouts 20 are inserted through the lip 16 of the sleeve to fix it to the formwork 24 and to form a secure structure which will not move when the slab concrete is poured thereabout.

Figure 5 illustrates the completed structure after the concrete 21 has been poured and solidified. To 25 reach this stage the formwork has been removed along with the attached sleeve and bung. A pipe coupling 22 has been inserted on the end of the copper pipe 19 by known means and an extension pipe 23 has been placed directly beneath the slab 21.

It will be observed that the completed structure enables the extension pipe 23 to be located right next to the slab and that a particularly aesthetic structure results.

Whilst the above has been given by way of illustrative example of the invention, many modifications and variations may be made thereto by persons skilled in the art without departing from the broad scope and ambit of the invention as herein set forth.

Claims

2. A concrete slab insert as claimed in claim 1, wherein said upwardly dished portion has a circular configuration and the cavity defining sleeve has a truncated conical configuration; the upper end of the sleeve being dimensioned to be substantially commensurate with the dimension of the dished portion where it supports the said dished portion.
3. A concrete slab insert as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the opening in the dished portion is centrally located with respect to the perimeter of the dished portion and is designed to snugly accommodate the •FFIC. pipe to be inserted therethrough.
4. A concrete slab insert as claimed in any one of claims 1-3 and wherein a collar is formed around the perimeter of the opening in the dished portion.
5. A concrete slab inset as claimed in claim 4, wherein the collar extends downwardly from the dished portion into the space defined by the sleeve.
6. A concrete slab insert as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the cavity defining 10 sleeve includes an upper platform on which the dished portion is supported; said platform including a passageway which is aligned with the opening in the dished portion.
7. A concrete slab insert as claimed in claim 6 wherein the passageway comprises neck projecting inwardly of the sleeve. S
8. A concrete slab insert as claimed in claim 6 when appended to claim 4 wherein the collar on the dished portion frictionally engages with an inner 20 perimeter wall of the neck on the sleeve; the said collar including an outwardly flared lip at its end which acts on the rim of the neck to maintain the sleeve and dished portion in close contact with one another.
9. A concrete slab insert as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the dished portion and the sleeve are joined together by a release adhesive. A concrete slab insert as claimed in any one of claims 1-7, wherein the dished portion and the sleeve are formed as an integral unit.
11. A concrete slab insert as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, and wherein a bung is provided to facilitate set-up and on which the associated pipe end is supported, in use, said bung comprising a grooved disc which is aligned with the opening in the dished portion of the insert, the groove in the disc being designed to accommodate the end of the pipe in a vertical orientation.
12. A concrete slab insert substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings. 10 DATED this Twelfth day of December 1997. MICAHAM PTY LTD By their Patent Attorneys FISHER ADAMS KELLY C C C S. C OF '1 OsA) ABSTRACT An insert for a concrete slab to enable slab penetrating pipework to be accommodated. The insert consists of a dished portion (10) in a combination with a frusto- conical shaped sleeve The dished portion snugly encircles and supports the pipework and additionally retains any water seepage around the pipe. The sleeve supports the dished portion and defines a cavity within the sleeve to facilitate pipework connection. e **o c e L4-a 69 c t L Fig. 1. Fig.Z. 0 C 0* C 00 00 0000 0000 0* 0** CC C. C C C 0* 0 *0 Fig. 3.
20-9? 2/2 74269/94 Fig. 4. 19 I 10 14 1/ I 17 16 12 0* 0 23 m