CA1292878C - Sloping blocks and revetment structure using the same - Google Patents

Sloping blocks and revetment structure using the same

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Publication number
CA1292878C
CA1292878C CA000561514A CA561514A CA1292878C CA 1292878 C CA1292878 C CA 1292878C CA 000561514 A CA000561514 A CA 000561514A CA 561514 A CA561514 A CA 561514A CA 1292878 C CA1292878 C CA 1292878C
Authority
CA
Canada
Prior art keywords
main body
block main
sloping
block
engagement
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Expired - Lifetime
Application number
CA000561514A
Other languages
French (fr)
Inventor
Norichika Hamaguchi
Minoru Hasegawa
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Nippon Tetrapod Co Ltd
Original Assignee
Nippon Tetrapod Co Ltd
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Nippon Tetrapod Co Ltd filed Critical Nippon Tetrapod Co Ltd
Priority to CA000561514A priority Critical patent/CA1292878C/en
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of CA1292878C publication Critical patent/CA1292878C/en
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical
Expired - Lifetime legal-status Critical Current

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Abstract

Abstract A stair-like revetment structure is formed by using sloping blocks. At the rear end of the block main body having an approximately rectangular and rearward sloping flat step are provided rear engagement pods opening like a wedge at the rear of the main body and front engagement pods having an approximately same shape as the rear engagement pods via a concave portion at the center bottom of the front of the main body, the concave portion being provided between the front and the rear engagement pods, to thereby decrease cost by simplified structure. Thus structured sloping blocks are arranged next to each other on a sloping foundation, and the front engagement pods of the sloping blocks of one layer is inserted into the engagement concave portion between the rear engagement pods of the adjacent block to successively cover the sloping foundation in a zig-zag and step-wise fashion, to thereby form a water passage with the concave portion of the upper layer sloping blocks and the engagement concave portion formed between the rear engagement portion of the sloping blocks of one layer below. The revetment structure can secure the safety of users since there are not exposed projections, holes, etc. on the stair-like steps.

Description

lZ~3'~ 8 SPECIFICATION

Title of the Invention Sloplng Blocks and Revetment Structure Using the Same Background of the Invention and Related Art Statement The present invention concerns a sloping block and a stair-like revetment structure using said sloping blocks which is generally referred to as water-friendly revetment.
In the prior art, revetmentsstructured for the coastal areas and rivers are usually of the vertical type as the disaster prevention functions are regarded the most important. However, there are proposed recently many revetment structures where the environmental aspect is given increased importance to allow people to approach the beaches and the shorelines. Such revetment structure is called water-friendly structure.
Such water-friendly revetment structure has a gentle sloped surface made up of a regular combination of blocks having sloped steps. The step of the sloped blocks is, however, provided with notches, holes or indentations for passing the water, thereby complicating the manu-facture process and pushing up the cost. As the surface of a structure built up with a combination of such sloped blocks had notches, holes or indentations exposed thereon, ~g lZ9Z~

it was not only dangerous for the general public, especially for infants and elderly, but also created the regular burden of removing dirts, etc. Thus the revetment of this type was inherently defective.

Summary of the Invention The present invention aims at simplifying the process of manufacture and decreasing the cost by offering a sloping block comprising a main body which is approximate-ly parallelepiped and has a sloped flat step extending rearward, one or more rear engagement pods opening in a wedge-like fashion at the rear of the main body, and front engagement pods of the same number and approximately the same shape as the rear engagement pods provided at the lower front center of the main body via a concave portion, said concave portion being provided between the rear and the ront engagement pods.
It is preferable, in particular, to give one or more than one curves to the front edge of the block main body, and to provide the curved front edge and the front edge of the front engagement pod on an approximately same plane, and to form a spacer at the rear engagement pod continuing from the step having approximately same dimension as that of the concave portion at the front of the main body.
A plurality of sloped blocks thus moulded are Z1~ 8 first arranged in horizontal layers at the bottom of the sloped foundation, and then laid in subsequently engaged layers toward the top of the foundation. The relation of sloped blocks arranged along the vertical axis of the sloped foundation is such that into the concave portion formed between the rear engagement pods of the sloping blocks placed in the bottom layer are inserted the fornt engagement pods of the sloping block$ on the ne~t upper layer, thereby causing the sloped foundation to be covered in a zig-zag and stepped fashion with these sloped blocks. In this case, the water passage is formed by the concave portion of the sloping block of the upper layer and between the rear engaqement pods of the blocks of one layer below in order that the thus con-structed revetment will have no notches, holes, etc. onthe stepped surfaces for passing the water, to thereby ensure safety and facillitate maintenance.
In a preferred embodiment there is provided a sloping block structure for use in covering an inclined surface, comprising a block main body which includes: an approximately rectangular main upper surface portion having front and rear portions, said main upper surface portion defining a rearwardly sloping step surface; a bottom surface portion opposite said main upper surface portion; at least one rear engagement pod extending from a rear portion of said block main body via a spacer portion said at least one rear engagement pod opening in a wedge-like shape at the rear end of said block main body; at least one front engagement pod provided in the same number and with approximately _ ~_ 1~9~
the same wedge shape as said at least one rear engagement pod, and extending from a ~ront portion of said block main ~ody at a lower portion of said block main body below said main upper surface portion, a front concave portion being formed in said front portion of said block main body above said at least one front engagement pod for receiving a spacer portion of another adjacent block structure therein, said first concave portion having a concavity of approximately the same dimensions as said spacer portion; and a bottom concave portion in said bottom surface portion of said block main body and positioned between said front and rear engagement pods and extending inwardly of said block main body in a direction substantially perpendicular to the sloping direction of said rearwardly sloping main upper surface portion.
Description of the Drawinqs Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing a preferred embodiment of a slo~ing block according to the present invention:
Fig. 2 is a plane view of the sloping block shown in Fig. 1:
Fig 3 is a side view of the sloping block shown in Fig. 1:

- 3a -,~

1'~9~8'7~3 Fig. 4 is a front view of the sloping block shown Fig. 1:
Fig. 5 is a back view of the sloping block shown in Fig. 1:
Fig. 6 is a bottom view of the sloping block shown in Fig. 1:
Fig. 7 is a perspective view of a water-friendly stepped revetment structure comprising sloping blocks;
Fig. 8 is an explanatory view showing the side of the water-friendly stepped revetment structure shown in Fig. 7:
Fig. 9 is a plane view of the water-friendly stepped revetment structure shown in Fig. 7:
Fig. 10 is an explanatory side view of the sloping blocks in engagement with each other to form the water-friendly stepped revetment structure shown in Fig. 7:
Fig. 11 is an explanatory bottom view for engage-ment of sloped blocks forming the water-friendly stepped revetment structure shown in Fig. 7:
Fig. 12 is a perspective view showing another embodiment of the sloping block according to the present invention; and Fig. 13 is a perspective view of the water-friendly stepped revetment structure comprising sloping blocks shown in Fig. 12.

lZ9Z878 Detailed Description of Preferred Embodiments The preferred embodiments of the sloping blocks in accordance with the present invention will now be ex-plained in detail by referring to attached drawings.
In Figs. 1 through 6, the sloped block 10 in accord-ance with this invention comprises a concrete block main body 14 having an approximately rectangular flat step 12 which is sloping rearward, a rear engagement pod 16 expanding from the center of the rear edge 14a of the main body 14 in a wedge-like fashion, a front engagement pod 20 having approximately the same shape as said rear engagement pod 16 via a concave portion 18 at the center bottom at the front of the main body 14, and a concave portion 22 expanding in the direction perpendicular to the sloping direction of the step 12 between the front engage-ment pod 20 and the rear engagement pod 16.
The front edge of the main body 14 is curved and the portion which is extending most of this curved Eront edge 14b will approximately be on the same plane as the front edge 20a of the front engagement pod 20. (See Fig. 1).
However, it is not necessary that the front edge 14b should have a curved shape; it may be straight or assume a different curve from that shown in the figure as a need airses.
At the base of the rear engagement pod 16 con-tinuing from the step 12 of the main body 14 is formed 1~9Z878 a spacer 24 having approximately the same dimensions as those ~ of the concave portion 18 formed at the front of the main body 14, and the rear end of this spacer 24 is formed into a step 26 which is one step lower.
The sloping block 10 thus constructed has no notches, holes or indentations on the step 12 of the main body 14 for passing the water, to thereby simplify the manu-facturing process and decrease the manufacturing cost.
It is also possible to finish the step surface and the revetment edge arbitrarlly to suit the environment, etc.
The water-friendly revetment structure comprising of such sloping blocks thus constructed is now explained.
As shown in Figs. 7 through 11, the water-friendly revetment structure 30 comprises a sloped foundation 32 with a gradient ranging from 1:2 to 1:5 and made up of rubble stones or concrete, a first layer A comprising horizontally arranged sloping blocks 10 in such a way that the two sides of a step 12 of the respective blocks 10 contact those of adjacent blocks, a second layer B comprislng another horizontally arranged sloping blocks 10 of which front engagement pods 20 are inserted into concave portions 34 (see Fig. 11) to be formed between rear engagement pods 16, 16 of the sloping blocks 10, 10 of the adjacent A, the third layer C comprising of still another horizontally arranged sloping blocks 10 of which front engagement pods 20 are inserted into a concave portion 34 between lZ92878 the rear engagement pods 16, 16 of the adjacent sloping blocks 10, 10 of the second layer B. The fourth layer ~, the fifthe layer E, and so forth are successively built in the similar fashion thereby to cover the sloping foundation 32 in a zig-zagging and step-wise fashion. As shown in Fig. 9, it is preferable to place sloping blocks 38 having a width which is 1/2 of that of said sloping blocks 10 at the edges of the sloping blocks 10 positioned at sides of the foundation so that the revetment is finished in straight lines.
As the sloping block layers are thus successively engaged with each other, there is formed a water passage 36 inside the front edge of the step 12 of the sloping blocks 10 of the upper layer; the water passage 36 is defined by the concave portion 18 and the concave portion 34 formed between the rear entgagement pods 16, 16 of the sloping blocks 10, 10 of the adjacent layer below.
The lower surface of the concave portion 18 of the main body 14 of the upper layer hlocks 10 are positioned above a lower step 26 formed on the rear engagement pod 16 of the sloping block 10 of the layer below. There is formed a space by the step 26 and the spacer 24 to prevent the water passage from becoming exposed on the step 12.
This is extremely safe for those walking on the revetment.
(See Fig. 10).
The passages 36 thus defined communicate with the l Z~Zf~18 concave portion 22 at the bottom of the adjacent sloping blocks 10 of the upper and the lower layer and on both sides to form a water path 42.
The water-freindly revetment structure 30 thus constructed maintains stability against the wave actions since the sloping blocks 10 are securely joined both vertically and horizontally as the engagement pods 16, 20 are engaged wlth the concave member 34. ~he incoming waves are suitably dissipated by the stair-like structure flowing back through the water passage 36 and the water path 42 formed by the concave portion 18 at the front edge of the step 12 of the sloping blocks 10 corresponding to the rise of the stairs and the concave portion 34 for engagement, to thereby prevent scouring of the sloping foundation 32 as much as possible.
Fig 12 shows another embodiment of the sloping block 50 according to the present invention; the block 50 comprising a pair of rear engagement pods 16a, 16b and the frontal engagement pods 21a, 21b having approximately the same shape and provided to extend from the rear and the front ends of a large block main body 14 having an elongated parallelepiped shape, the front edge of the block main body 14 formed as a continuous curve, and spacers 23, 23 are formed on the rear engagement pods 16a, 16b continuing from the step 12 and having approximately the same dimensions as the dimension ~ of the concave portion 18 Z~378 at the front to the main body 18, and an engagement concave portion 34 between the rear engagement pods 16a, 16b.
The sloping blocks 50 can maintain stability relative to the installation site by their inherent shape, and the stair-like water-friendly revetment structure using the sloping blocks 50 in a manner similar to that described for the above embodiment (see Fig. 13) can reduce the overall costs because of easy installation and engineering.
As discussed heretofore, simplified manufacturing process of the sloping block according to this invention leads to a remarkable reduction of overall costs, and the edges and steps can be finished arbitrarily to improve the environmental landscape. The revetment structure built with these sloping blocks is not only stable against the wave actions but can prevent undesirable scouring for the sloping foundations. As the structure is Eree of holes and indentations on the step surfaces, those walking on the structure can be protected from unforeseen danger.
Although foregoing statement was made in respect of preferable embodiments of the sloping blocks and revetment structures built with these blocks according to the present invention, this invention is not to be limited to these embodiments alone. The step portion of the sloping block can be made of water permeable materials to improve water discharge rate, or a portion or all of the steps can be covered by rough faced tiles lZ~878 or colored to enhance the beauty of sloping blocks or of revetment structure as a whole.
Various changes and modifications in design, etc.
can naturally be made within the scope of the spirit of this invention such as making the step portion of the sloping blocks water permeable, coloring or covering a portion or all of the steps with rough faced tiles to enhance the beauty of sloping blocks or of revetment structure as a whole.

Claims (10)

1. A sloping block structure for use in covering an inclined surface, comprising a block main body which includes:
an approximately rectangular main upper surface portion having front and rear portions, said main upper surface portion defining a rearwardly sloping step surface;
a bottom surface portion opposite said main upper surface portion;
at least one rear engagement pod extending from a rear portion of said block main body via a spacer portion said at least one rear engagement pod opening in a wedge-like shape at the rear end of said block main body;
at least one front engagement pod provided in the same number and with approximately the same wedge shape as said at least one rear engagement pod, and extending from a front portion of said block main body at a lower portion of said block main body below said main upper surface portion, a front concave portion being formed in said front portion of said block main body above said at least one front engagement pod for receiving a spacer portion of another adjacent block structure therein, said first concave portion having a concavity of approximately the same dimensions as said spacer portion; and a bottom concave portion in said bottom surface portion of said block main body and positioned between said front and rear engagement pods and extending inwardly of said block main body in a direction substantially perpendicular to the sloping direction of said rearwardly sloping main upper surface portion.
2. The sloping block structure of claim 1, wherein:

said block main body has a curved front edge which is formed in at least one curve;
said at least one front engagement pod has a front edge; and said curved front edge of said block main body and said front edge of said at least one front engagement pod are positioned approximately in the same plane.
3. The sloping block structure of claim 1, wherein:
said at least one rear engagement pod extends in the width direction of said block main body over a smaller distance than the overall width of said block main body; and said at least one front engagement pod extends in the width direction of said block main body over a smaller distance than the overall width of said block main body.
4. The sloping block structure of claim 1, wherein said wedge shapes of said front and rear engagement pods are complementary so as to be lockingly interengaging when said block main bodies are arranged adjacent to each other.
5. The sloping block structure of claim 1, wherein:
said spacer portion has an upper surface which extends from and is on the same plane as said main upper surface portion of said block main body; and said at least one rear engagement pod has an upper surface which is below the level of said main upper surface portion of said block main body.
6. A revetment structure for covering an inclined surface, comprising a plurality of sloping blocks, each block having a block main body which includes:
an approximately rectangular main upper surface portion having front and rear portions, said main upper surface portion defining a rearwardly sloping step surface;
a bottom surface portion opposite said main upper surface portion;
at least one rear engagement pod extending from a rear portion of said main body via a spacer portion, said at least one rear engagement pod opening in a wedge-like shape at the rear end of said block main body;
at least one front engagement pod provided in the same number and with approximately the same wedge shape as said at least one rear engagement pod and extending from a front portion of said block main body at a lower portion of said block main body below said main upper surface portion, a front concave portion being formed in said front portion of said block main body above said at least one front engagement pod for receiving a spacer portion of another adjacent block structure therein, said first concave portion having a concavity of approximately the same dimensions as said spacer portion; and a bottom concave portion in said bottom surface portion of said block main body and positioned between said front and rear engagement pods and extending inwardly of said block main body in a direction substantially perpendicular to the sloping direction of said rearwardly sloping main upper surface portion;
said sloping blocks being arranged adjacent to one another in rows in the lateral direction of the revetment structure, said sloping blocks being arranged in a zig-zag stair-like fashion over said inclined surface with the front engagement pods of one lateral row of sloping blocks being insertable in respective gap portions formed between adjacent rear engagement pods of another lateral row of sloping blocks, and a water passage being defined by concave portions of an upper lateral row of sloping blocks and said gap portions formed between the rear engagement pods of said sloping blocks of the lateral row which is below said upper lateral row.
7. The revetment structure of claim 6, wherein:
said block main bodies each have a curved front edge which is formed in at least one curve;
said at least one front engagement pod of each block main body has a front edge; and said curved front edge of each said block main body and said front edge of said at least one front engagement pod thereof are positioned approximately in the same plane.
8. The revetment structure of claim 6, wherein:
said at least one rear engagement pod of each block main body extends in the width direction of said block main body over a smaller distance than the overall width of said block main body; and said at least one front engagement pod of each block main body extends in the width direction of said block main body over a smaller distance than the overall width of said block main body.
9. The revetment structure of claim 6, wherein said wedge shapes of said front and rear engagement pods of each block main body are complementary so as to be lockingly interengaging when said block main bodies are arranged adjacent each other.
10. The revetment structure of claim 6, wherein:

said spacer portion of each block main body has an upper surface which extends from and is on the same plane as said main upper surface portion of said block main body; and said at least one rear engagement pod has an upper surface which is below the level of said main upper surface portion of the respective block main body.
CA000561514A 1988-03-15 1988-03-15 Sloping blocks and revetment structure using the same Expired - Lifetime CA1292878C (en)

Priority Applications (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
CA000561514A CA1292878C (en) 1988-03-15 1988-03-15 Sloping blocks and revetment structure using the same

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
CA000561514A CA1292878C (en) 1988-03-15 1988-03-15 Sloping blocks and revetment structure using the same

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
CA1292878C true CA1292878C (en) 1991-12-10

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Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
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Country Status (1)

Country Link
CA (1) CA1292878C (en)

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