EP1982028A1

EP1982028A1 - Demountable modular structure for the compact storage of vehicles on a surface and the floor over

Info

Publication number: EP1982028A1
Application number: EP07713430A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Stefano Paolucci
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2006-02-03
Filing date: 2007-02-02
Publication date: 2008-10-22
Also published as: WO2007088573A1; ITRM20060054A1

Abstract

Demountable modular structure of the same kind as those already known for the construction of one-deck raised parking lots without foundations, but designed to be utilized in an economically convenient way for the compact storage in deposit surfaces in industrial areas, ports, inter-ports, where the vehicles are laid up maximizing the use of the land and following specific manoeuvring rules where going into reverse is excluded. The structure is characterized by the fact that its squared modules each one defined by four vertical supporting elements (3) are arranged in at least three parallel strips of modules, wherein the ties (8) laying in vertical planes are located, in the first and in the third one of said strips, in two parallel vertical planes, at the borders of the whole set of the three strips and oriented according to a first direction, while the ties located in the central strip lay in vertical planes oriented according to a second direction orthogonal to the first one.

Description

DEMOUNTABLE MODULAR STRUCTURE FOR THE COMPACT STORAGE OF VEHICLES ON A SURFACE AND THE FLOOR OVER

DESCRIPTION

The present invention relates to a modular demountable structure for the compact storage of vehicles on two levels. More particularly, this invention relates to a structure of the same kind as those already known for the construction of one-deck raised parking lots without foundations, but designed to be utilized in an economically convenient way not for the parking of vehicles in autonomous manoeuvring, but for their compact storage in deposit surfaces in industrial areas, ports, inter-ports, where the vehicles are laid up maximizing the use of the land and following specific manoeuvring rules, among which, inter alia, going into reverse is excluded. As it is known, constructions of one raised floor or deck that can be set up in short time and with restricted economic resources are the object of a particular interest, particularly for building more or less temporary parking lots, as an alternative to conventional multi-storey underground and/or raised car park constructions. Although the latter represent, apparently, the most obvious solution to the problem of the lack of areas for car parking purposes, especially in densely populated zones or in zones with high vehicles influx, as in proximity of an airport, a railway station, a hospital or an industrial building, a stadium, quite often they cannot be adopted because of practical difficulties, or for the impossibility to have the building ground indefinitely available, for economic drawbacks due to the costs of the realization, or also because the requested time periods for building are not compatible with the utilization needs. In such a situation, the possibility of obtaining rapidly and at low costs additional raised parking places on already existing surface parking areas, or else on areas that cannot themselves be employed as parking lots, e.g. owing to archaeological or environmental restraints, is certainly advantageous, and has been so far exploited through the realization of single-deck modular structures, preferably without foundations and, even more preferably, demountable and re-usable structures.

The structure of this kind that has had the widest diffusion in Europe is the structure disclosed in the European patent EP 0364414 (in the name of Centro Progettazioni Coordinate s.r.l., i.e. the Fast Park^®), the description of which is incorporated herein by reference. Such structure consists of a modular and sectional assembly that can be easily installed for setting up, in extremely short times, a raised deck to be used as a parking place for cars, and that can also be disassembled and recovered for reutilization, for instance in a different location. The structure substantially consists of modular units each of which comprises a rectangular or square composite floor element, surrounded by four edge beams and held up at its corners by four vertical supporting elements that bear said edge beams through corresponding node elements or capitals. Under the said vertical supporting elements, special bases for resting on the ground are provided, while a system of ties and/or struts transversely strengthens the structure. A schematic view of the modular structure is shown in Figure 1 of the attached drawings, which corresponds to Figure 1 of EP 0364414, wherein with (1) the modular units are shown as a whole and with (2) the ramps for entering the upper level are shown.

As is shown in Figure 2, also taken from the European patent at issue, each vertical supporting element (3) - column or pillar - comprises, towards its base (4), a threaded pivot (5) that has the function of allowing the regulation in length of the said vertical element. The base (4) also comprises, above the foot (6) made of a flat plate, a hinge system (7), in particular consisting of a spherical joint (not visible), that allows the foot (6) to lay on the ground accord- ing to the slope of the existing surface, while allowing the above supporting element (3) over it to assume a perfectly vertical position. Such a double adjustment system makes it possible to install the modular structure even over not previously leveled, uneven grounds, and without any need to provide for foundation works. The structure according to the European patent EP 0364414 is set up by assembling the modular units beside one another, with adjacent modules sharing in turn the relevant beams and supporting elements, so as to form a raised deck for the car parking that assumes the de- sired shape and size.

In the structure described above there can be distinguished a composite basic module consisting of a raised deck portion with the corresponding supporting structure, determined by four edge beams and by four columns or pillars at the four angles of said raised deck portion. It is evident that the structure, in addition to the raised deck for parking, for moving and sorting the vehicles to the parking stalls, also comprises at least one ramp for entrance and/or exit (shown by numeral 2 in Figure 1), connecting the raised deck with the ground floor. The modular structures described above were used, until now, for providing new raised decks for parking of vehicles in commercial applications that can be defined as "conventional". Here the available parking surface on one or both levels of the structure is set up and operated so that each user (car driver) can autonomously manoeuvre and park his car into the parking stall and exit from the same stall independently of all the other users of the parking. In other terms, the stall dimensions and their planimetric distribution, relating to the in and out manoeuvring routes, are configured in such a way that each vehicle can be parked without being obstructed by others and can be removed from the stall without moving other vehicles before. This parking operation is necessary in a public parking where the allocation of the cars is not carried out by the parking staff.

In the simplest configuration, the distribution of the car spaces in the modules appears to be as shown in Figure 1 : in a strip having a three-module width, the central module is the drive aisle for the cars and the two modules right and left of the drive aisle are employed as parking stalls, by entering each car place with a 90° maneuver. The exit from the stall after the stay, when no further space in front of the parked car is available, must necessarily be in reverse, then recovering the central drive aisle.

As disclosed by EP 0364414, the most convenient measures for the basic module are those corresponding to two parallel parking spaces, that, at least in Europe, are preferably of 5x5 m; a similar module of 5x5 m defines an element of the traffic lane, sufficient to be an aisle with a double way of transit, - A -

but preferably employed, in the public parking lots, as a one-way driveway.

As noted above, among the features of the modular parking structure according to EP 0364414, the feature to which the major success of this type of structure is due lies in the fact that this structure does not need traditional foundations, i.e. the structure is leaned over the existing asphalted pavement with no need to prepare the setting surface for the installation. All the arrangements necessary for its stability, even in the case of a seismic event, are reduced to fixation works into the ground using nailing or screw-bolts, and to the installation of a sufficient number of horizontal and vertical bracing ele- ments, able to connect in a suitable way the structural nodes of the system. More particularly, as concerns the bracing elements to be placed in the vertical planes (8 and 9 in Figure 2), the supporting bases are connected both with each other and with the capitals of the adjacent column by ties or struts, while the horizontal bracing elements (10 in Figure 2) co-operate in connecting the diagonally opposed capitals with each other.

Whilst the horizontal bracing, that is located at the capitals level, does not obstruct the free circulation of the cars under the modular structure, the vertical bracing has to be articulated and organized in such a way that it does not obstruct the maneuvering of the vehicles either when parking, or during the circulation at the lower lever of the structure. The preferred and also the technically most efficient position of the ties and struts is a type of distribution that, as seen in plan, represents a "star shape": four couples of ties/struts in the vertical planes converge on the same column (base and capital) so that, in plan, a cross is formed, and from the same capital also the network of the horizontal bracing starts, each brace directed towards the capital diagonally opposed in the module. In this way the tensile stress, to which the bracing has to resist, may find a common distribution point in the node (capital) at the top of the column that is in the centre of the "star".

The higher the complexity degree of the parking lot plan, the taller the raised deck and the higher the seismic level of the installation site is, the more articulated and complex the bracing system shall be.

The bracing system, that is imposed in the structures without founda- tions, is able on one hand to guarantee the modular structure stability but, on the other hand, represents an obstruction to the free circulation and parking manoeuvring of the vehicles at the lower level when less restraints and more efficiency in terms of capacity are requested for the parking system. For in- stance, if it is requested to use the modular structure for a more compact parking system, also with a non-indipendent manoeuvre (i.e. with the arrangement of the cars into the parking spaces operated by staff), it would be impossible to compact the vehicles over a certain limit with simple manoeuvres, because of the presence of a number of bracing elements that are not removable for reasons of structural stability

More than in the public parking lots, this situation is more frequent and critical in the surfaces for cars storage in ports, inter-ports and in the areas around industrial plants and car repair and maintenance garages, or in the storage areas of car concessionaries. In these situations a structure as the one used for modular conventional car parking, although being attractive for its commercial convenience, is not adaptable for a series of problems, either operational and architectural, that will be considered in the following.

The storage of vehicles is generally set up in very large parking areas, where it is organized according to rules codified and shared by both car indus- try and transporters organizations. Said rules aim on one hand at maximizing the capacity of the storage surface and on the other hand at minimizing the manoeuvring time and the related risks of accident.

In particular, for increasing the capacity of the parking surface the trend is to draw up the vehicles the more is possible, only maintaining a mini- mal security distance between the same. This is made possible by the fact that in this case it is not necessary foresee that each driver can enter and exit freely from each parked vehicle, but it is sufficient that the driver (the staff operator) can exit from the last parked car and that he can re-enter in it to move again, in a reverse succession, the whole series of cars that he had placed on the area.

Moreover, in order to minimize the manoeuvring time a suitable number of accesses are distributed by all the sides of the storage area, by provid- ing manoeuvring and distribution aisles, and also ramps for the access to the upper decks when the storage areas are disposed on more levels. Actually, in the event that the parking lot is operated by a number of operating drivers, each one of them, in parallel to the work of the other drivers, has to be able to use specific portions of the deck without needing to have recourse to entrances or ramps too far away from the storage place. This fact represents an opposite necessity to what happens in a traditional parking, where it is better to limit an excess in manoeuvring possibilities by the users, thus avoiding re- circles, parasite manoeuvres, curves and crossroads, with the aim to push the driver into the quickest research of the available space and with the best efficiency. In this case, normally, the entrances into the parking structure and the exits therefrom are limited in number, as well as the possibilities to pass from the lower level to the upper end vice versa. This limitation of the entrances and exits also has the function to avoid dangerous crossroads and dazzle effects that may result from excessive manoeuvring from the inside to the outside of the parking deck and vice versa and, also, to avoid the need of a closer control of the parking either from the point of view of the security and for the parking management in case of a payment for parking is required.

Finally, another extremely important feature in compact car storage areas management consists in the fact that in such areas, in order to reduce at the minimal terms any risks of crashes during the manoeuvres, it is a consolidated and internationally known praxis to avoid all the reverse manoeuvres, as well as any manoeuvre that can generate risks of crash either with other vehicles, or with the constructive components of the storage structures. Therefore, inside the storage areas, as for example the internal area of a port where cars in transit to be shipped have to be stored, the vehicles are disposed in a sequence, in a position very close one to the other, only manoeuvring in ahead, both when entering and when exiting the storage space.

The obligation to manoeuvre always ahead negatively affects in par- ticular the modular structures without foundations such as the one described in the patent EP 0364414, because the bracing system must be positioned vertically in such a way as to cover all the main directions of the structure (i.e. north-south; east-west). Consequently, each traffic aisle and parking way, at the lower level, is necessarily interrupted by the bracing system, that obliges the vehicles to park in front of the bracing, with the necessity to manoeuvre in reverse when exiting the parking place. Said exiting manoeuvring in reverse results to be normal, if not obvious, in a standard traditional parking, while it becomes completely forbidden in a storage parking.

As shown in Figure 3 of the attached drawings, which is also referred to the modular structure disclosed in the patent EP 0364414, a parking portion of 3x3 modules, that will be defined here, for the sake of brevity, "hyper- module", appears, at the lower level, to be composed by two lateral strips each one consisting of three modules and forming the parking spaces (11) - each parking space being pointed out by a triangle symbol - and a central strip of three modules, forming the traffic aisle. In view of the preferred size of the modular unit, in every module of 5x5 m two cars can be accommodated. For instance, the standard width of a car is about 1.75 m, to which there must be added, on both sides of the car, 0.5 m for the doors opening. Between two cars there is foreseen an overlap of the door opening spaces, that clearly will not be opened both at the same time. Actually, the size of a standard space in a traditional parking lot may vary from 2.40 to 2.50 m. Consequently, in its conventional configuration the "hyper-module" (that can be repeated indefinitely to compose parking lots of any size and configuration, after the addition of at least one or, preferably, two ramps for the entrance on to the upper deck) can contain an total of 12 vehicles. For guarantee of the structure stability, the couples of bracing elements (8) in the vertical planes should be at least 8, of which 4 in vertical planes oriented in one direction and the other 4 in planes oriented in an orthogonal direction. It is evident from the graphic representation that any bracing arrangement that does not obstruct the car parking and circulation inside a "hyper-module" will have to foresee a perimetral location for the bracing couples around each "hyper-module", as is shown for example in Figure 3.

It is also evident that in a configuration, as the one explained, it is not possible to compact the vehicles further, at least in the lower level, where it is not possible to leave out of consideration the presence of the bracings in the vertical layer. Therefore, demountable modular systems without foundations as the one described in EP 0364414 are not able to fit, in their standard configuration, a compact vehicle parking, and specifically they do not fit to the storage of vehicles, for example, in industrial areas or in ports, where there is also the unavoidable limit for the cars not to go into reverse.

In the light of the foregoing, an object of the present invention is therefore to provide a demountable modular structure suitable for the realization of raised parking decks of the same kind as the one disclosed in the patent EP 0364414, where may be possible to lay the vehicles, also at the lower level, in a close and compact position, in such a way as to maximize the capacity, despite the presence of the bracing elements that are necessary to support a structure that is without foundations, and where the vehicles can be moved, by the parking staff, exclusively moving forward. For that purpose the present invention set forth, first of all, to modify the position of bracing elements in the vertical planes in such a way that in each "hyper-module" consisting of 3x3 modules, according to the solution of the cited prior art, the bracing elements are placed in two parallel and pe- rimetral planes and those that have to be placed in vertical planes oriented in the orthogonal direction are not in perimetral planes but are foreseen in the central strip of the hyper-module. In this way it is possible to realize the same number of bracing elements (4 couples of ties located in planes oriented to one direction and 4 couples of ties in planes oriented to the orthogonal direction), at the same time allowing the positioning, in a block of 9 modules, of two external strips of vehicles, laying in a direction parallel to the planes of the external bracing elements, and one strip of vehicles in central position, parked 90° to the two external strips and laying parallel to the planes of the bracing elements in the central strip of the hyper-module. In the just described configuration of the hyper-module, therefore, 18 vehicles can thus be stored, all manoeuvring exclusively forward, according to an overall U-turn pattern movement from the entrance to the exit. In practice, with specific reference to the Figure 4 of the attached drawings (to be further commented upon in the following description), in one "hyper-module" that has identical size as the one shown in Figure 3 and that comprises the same number of bracing elements, it is possible, with this configuration, to fill the central strip as well and avoid, at the same time, any manoeuvring into reverse, following the path according to the broken lines.

Therefore, the present invention specifically provides a demountable modular structure for the compact storage of vehicles comprising a number of basic modules, each of said modules, separately considered, comprising a rectangular or square composite floor element, four edge beams at the sides of said floor element, four node elements at the corners of said floor element, four vertical supporting elements under said node elements, four bases under said vertical supporting elements and a number of ties and/or struts for the structure bracing, connected at their ends to said node elements and to said bases, wherein each of said bases comprises a flat base plate and incorpo- rates means for regulating the total length of said supporting elements, wherein said modules are arranged in at least three parallel strips of modules, in which said ties and/or struts laying in vertical planes are located, in the first and in the third of said strips, in two parallel vertical planes, at the borders of the whole set of the three strips and oriented according to a first direction, while the ties and/or struts located in the central strip lay in vertical planes oriented according a second direction, orthogonal to the first one.

In a structure according to the invention which incorporates the preferred elements of the structure of the prior art referred to in the foregoing, namely both the adjustability in length of the vertical supporting elements and the hinged connection of the flat plates of the base of each supporting element, there are comprised, specifically, vertical supporting elements (pillars or columns) wherein the means for adjusting the length are made of a treaded joint between each one of the bases and the relevant vertical supporting element and, in addition, each one of said bases also incorporates hinge means. The hinge means are preferably but not exclusively spherical hinge means, and connect said flat base plate to said vertical supporting element, order to be able to adapt the slope of the flat base plate with respect to the resting surface on the ground.

According to a preferred embodiment of the hinged base that confers the adaptability to the ground slope according to the invention, that is also exploited in the demountable modular structure of the prior art, each of said hinge elements makes out a spherical hinge, and comprises a cylindrical collar rigidly fixed at the center of said flat base plate with its axis orthogonal to the plane of the base plate, a first hinge member in the shape of a spherical segment resting on said base plate within the cylindrical collar with its convex side upwards, a cylindrical pivot externally threaded, of a smaller diameter than said cylindrical collar and having, at its lower end, a second hinge member in the shape of a spherical segment with its concave side downwards, said lower end of the cylindrical pivot being inserted in said cylindrical collar, and an internally threaded sleeve fitting the cylindrical pivot and externally coupled with the hollow lower end of the vertical supporting element. Some of the preferred embodiments of the structure for compact storage of vehicles according to the invention provide that for each group of nine modules divided in said three strips, a total of at least 4 couples of ties are included in two vertical parallel planes at the borders of the whole set of the three strips, and at least four couples of ties are located in four vertical planes in the central strip, oriented orthogonal to the direction of the border planes.

As already noted, in the conventional modular parking, considering that the standard size of a parking space is between 2.40 and 2.50 m, also including in this size the space necessary for the independent opening of both doors, modules of the average dimensions 5x5 m can be employed for placing two vehicles. With the same module sizes, and with the bracing configuration according to the present invention, into a "hyper-module" consisting of 3x3 modules 18 vehicles can be stored in place of the 12 expected in the structure of the prior art. Considering the fact that in the storage parking it is not necessary that in all the cars the doors can freely be opened, and bearing in mind that only one driver of the parking staff is operating the movement of the cars in a sequence, it is sufficient that only the door of the last moved car, in a series of cars located side by side, can be opened. In consideration of the fact, as already pointed out, that the average width of a car is 1.75 m, considering the free space between the parked car to be of 0.25 m, a parking place in a compact storage parking lot can be 2 m large. To the 4 m thus obtained for the storage of two cars 0.5 m have to be added for the opening of the last door (which will be then the first door to be opened in the inverse sequence during the emptying out of the site), thus arriving to a total of about 4.5 m per module.

In the light of the foregoing, for the parking of two cars in a "storage" position there should be sufficient a module width of about 4.5 m, compared to the width of 5 m expected in the conventional modules. In effect, the size of the structure modules according to the invention may be reduced accordingly, with some saving in the materials. However, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, with a proper variation of the module grid of the system, and without any drawback for the structure from a constructive point of view, it is possible to increase even more advantageously the capacity. It has been considered, according to the invention, that by placing three vehicles side by side in one module, based on the 2 m size per space plus 0.5 m for the last door opening, the total module width is brought to 6.5 m, that is a grid dimension still well compatible with the bearing capacity of the ground to resist to the concentrated load under one column. At the same time, the increasing of the general capacity is remarkable in respect to the previous case, because with strips of three vehicles instead of two, there is a 50% saving of the additional 0.5 m space for the opening of the last doors. With reference to the previous "hyper-module" example corresponding to a group of nine modules, with the disclosed solution there may be stored in the same a total of 24 vehicles, i.e. exactly the double of the cars contained into a analogous module of a conventional modular parking.

According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, therefore, in the proposed modular structure said first and third strip of modules have a width of at least 6.50 m. Since in the intermediate strip the vehicles are located in a 90° position, the strip can maintain the 5x5 m module size: this configuration is technically feasible without any problems, due to the fact a module of 6.5 x 5 m coupled with a standard module 5x5 m produces an increase of about 10% of the modular surface, and consequently the same increase of the concentrated load transferred on the ground in respect to a standard system.

Preferably, in the modular structure proposed, said first and third strip of modules have a width of about 6.80 m and said central strip has the width of about 5 m. In effect, the size of 6.80 m also takes into account the vertical supporting elements cluttering, that in the preferred configuration are steel columns having the diameter dimension of 14 cm, as well as a pedestrian emergency escape route, that is necessary to provide aside the last line of parked vehicles.

A more preferred solution provides for the first and the third strip a width of a size allowing the storage of a fourth line of vehicles. Said width is at least about 8.80 m, i.e. the 6.80 m already described in the three lines solution plus 2 m more for the fourth car. For balancing the increasing of the module surface incident over the column it is possible to modify the other size of the modular grid, by reducing, for example, the width of the second strip, i.e. the central one, to a minimum of 2 m (preferably between 2.20 m and 2.40 m). Such minimal dimension is approximately equal to the clearance of the supporting column (generally comprised between 2.20 and 2.40 m), so that the transversal bracing elements of the second strip result to have in this way an incidental angle of about 45°.

In the alternative, or also as the same time as what proposed above, it is possible to operate a decrease of the module surface, reducing the grid in the direction orthogonal to the previous one, from 5.00 m to a minimum of about 2.00 m (preferably about 3.00 m).

It has to be noted that the described modifications, even bringing to an increase of the number of the structural components, show, in addition to the advantage of a better efficiency and a more easy manoeuvrability for a greater number of drivers, also the advantage to have available a greater number of couples of ties, based on the same surface size of the decking system.

In agreement with what noticed initially about the opportunity to pro- vide more ramps for the access to the raised level than normally foreseen in a public parking, the modular structure according to the invention comprises, preferably, an access ramp to the upper level for each group of said parallel module strips, oriented with the driveway parallel to the direction of said strips, or one ramp for every two groups of three strips, located in the middle of said two groups of strips.

The total length of a block of three parallel strips of modules is conveniently of at least six modules, but it is not subject to particular limitations, if not for the need to foresee an adequate number of accesses and ramps hav- ing opportune positions, also with a view to define specific storage spaces and exclusive action limits for each staff driver.

In accordance with the constructive solution adopted as optimal in the cited prior art, also in the structure of the invention each one of said node elements of a module comprises a first tubular section coaxially insertable in the hollow upper end of the said vertical supporting element, having, regularly spaced out around its external surface, first pierced connection plates or eye hooks for connection with said ties and/or struts, a horizontal plate for supporting said edge beams, fixed at the upper end of said first tubular section, and a second tubular section over said plate, integral and coaxial with said first sec- tion, having second pierced connection plates for connection with said edge beams, regularly spaced out around its external surface, lying in vertical planes slightly shifted with respect to the axial planes. Moreover, always in accordance with the prior art, each of said bases also comprises one or more reinforcing elements to stiffen the connection between said flat base plate and said cylindrical collar.

The structure according to the invention, when proposed for the compact storage of vehicles, may have a clearance similar to that conventionally adopted in the analogous parking structures; in this case, the clearance of the raised deck is at least 2.10 m from the level of the relative bases, being more frequently around 2.80 m.

Differently from the conventional parking, the proposed structure may be utilized for the storage, at the lower level, of truck trailers or of other vehi- cles of the same clutter. It has been evaluated, for this purpose, that the same strip of 6.80 m, that in the case of vehicles can accommodate three parallel lines, in the case of trailers may accommodate two in an optimal way. The only modification necessary in this case, in respect to the structure described above, is that there must be foreseen a greater clearance of the vertical supporting elements, that is the height of the upper level of said modules is, in this case, at least 4.20 m from the level of the relative bases, the average height being around 4.50 m.

The specific features of this invention, as well as the advantages thereof and the corresponding operating modes, will be clearer with reference to some specific embodiments thereof, which are shown by way of example only in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 shows a schematic perspective view of a modular parking lot according to the European patent EP 0364414; Figure 2 shows a side elevation view of a portion of a structure of

Figure 1 ;

Figure 3 shows a schematic axonometric view of a "hyper-module" consisting of 3x3 modules of the structure according the patent EP 0364414,

Figure 4 shows a schematic axonometric view of a "hyper-module" consisting of 3x3 modules of the structure according to a first embodiment of the compact storage structure according to the invention, at the lower level;

Figures 5 and 6 show two schematic axonometric views of a portion of the structure according to the invention consisting of the "hyper-modules" of Figure 4, respectively at the lower level and ad the upper level; Figures 7 and 8 show two views in plan of a portion of the structure for the compact storage of vehicles according to a second embodiment of the invention, respectively at the lower level and ad the upper level; and

Figure 9 shows a view in plan, at the lower level, of a portion of a structure analogous to that of Figure 7 but modified in a way to have a differ- ent capacity at the lower level.

Figures 1-3, that represent the prior art solution covered by the patent EP 0364414, have already been discussed in the introduction, where refer- ence has been made to the solution according the present invention as described in Figure 4, in connection with a unit of 3x3 modules that is referred to as "hyper-module", to compare the constructive disposal and the functionality thereof with the analogous "hyper-module" of the parking structure of the prior art. As observed, by virtue of the arrangement of the ties and/or struts (8) according to the invention it is possible to place in the hyper-module 18 vehicle instead of 12, and operating all the manoeuvres forward. Both when manoeuvring to fill the area and to clear it, for instance, the driver will move along paths that have altogether a U-shape and that are shown in Figure 4 by a broken line. For example, the driver will fill up first the strip on the right-hand of the group of spaces shown, following paths having a U-shape from the entrance, then he will lay the vehicles in the central line manoeuvring at 90° , and finally he can fill up the left-hand strip driving straight from the entrance point. For the exit manoeuvre, having to proceed without going into reverse, he will start from the cars of the first strip stored, then continuing with the second and the third strip.

The use of a structure according the invention consisting of a group of hyper-modules of the kind shown in Figure 4 is disclosed in Figures 5 and 6, where the corresponding elements are pointed out by the same reference numbers of the previous figures. As shown in Figure 5, in this case the unit comprises three strips of modules on the right and three strips of modules on the left of the ramp (2) for the access to the upper level, centrally located. Figure 5 shows the filling of the spaces (11) at the lower level, that is operated with modality similar to those just described: in this case the strips of the mod- ules have a length of six modules (two "hyper-modules" in each side).

Figure 6 shows the filling of the spaces (11) on the upper level, where the problem of possible obstruction by the vertical supporting elements (3) and the ties (8) does not exist. An adequate distribution of the vehicles, respecting the rule not to move into reverse, is the one shown in the figure, where the broken lines indicate the drive paths, having an overall ring-shape around the ramp, so as to locate all the vehicles and to remove them during the downloading of the area. The plan view of Figures 7 and 8 shows, in scale, the size of a storage structure according to the preferred embodiment of the invention. Here, operating a minor variation the grid of the modular structure (from 5 m to 6.80 m approx.), there becomes possible to store at the lower level (Figure 7) three lines of cars, instead of two, in each one of the two external strips. In this specific case, the width between a vertical supporting element (3) and the other one in the first and in the third strip is 6.80 m, of which (2m + 2m + 2m + 0.50 m) for the three spaces side by side plus the space for opening the last door, plus 0.14 m corresponding to the size of the two vertical supporting elements (3), i.e. 0.07 m for each one, calculated from their axes. The central strip, with the vehicles parked at 90° and presenting the ties (8) in vertical planes orthogonal to those of the first and of the third strip, maintains the length of 5 m. For a better clarity, in Figure 7 half of the "hyper-modules" are represented with the symbolic image of the spaces (11), meaning that the vehicles have to be placed in the same way also in the other half. Moreover, also the U-shape drive paths are shown in symbols only over half area.

In the embodiment shown in Figure 9, where the elements corresponding to those of the analogous Figure 7 are indicated by the same reference numerals, each one of the two strips presents not three, but four lines of vehicles. In this case, the increase of the transversal size of the first and of the third strip results in the reduction of the modular grid, with the aim to re- modulate suitably the load insisting over each vertical supporting element (3). In the case of storage of vehicles shorter than the normal average it is still possible to employ the second strip for the parking of at least one car for each module, said transversal spaces will have sizes correlated to said modular reductions, to be composed also in relation to the kind of vehicles to be stored. As it may be noted, in the upper part of Figure 9 4+4 lines of vehicles of the "Smart" type are placed, plus a line of a transversal parking, while in the lower half of Figure 9 vehicles of a medium size are placed; in this case the transversal passages can be used for the storage of shorter cars or also only for the U-shaped turning manoeuvre.

As it is clearly noticed from Figure 8, the arrangement of the spaces (11) on the upper level is not limited, the only necessary criteria being to fill up in a compact way all the area, using 2 m width for every space and exclusively proceeding forward. Also in this case, the filling or the emptying order according to drive paths having an overall ring-shape is the most efficient one. Going back to Figure 7, with the strips sizes according to this embodiment it is also possible to store at the lower level two lines of truck trailers instead of the three parallel lines of vehicles, using again in an optimal way the available space. As already noted, for the structure to be employable for this possibility a higher clearance for the upper deck has to be foreseen, spe- cifically at least 4.20 m.

The present invention has been disclosed with particular reference to some specific embodiments thereof, but it should be understood that modifications and changes may be made by the persons skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Claims

1. A demountable modular structure for the compact storage of vehicles comprising a number of basic modules, each of said modules, separately considered, comprising a rectangular or square composite floor element, four edge beams at the sides of said floor element, four node elements at the corners of said floor element, four vertical supporting elements (3) under said node elements, four bases (4) under said vertical supporting elements (3) and a number of ties and/or struts for the structure bracing (8, 9, 10), connected at their ends to said node elements and to said bases (4), where each of said bases (4) comprises a flat base plate (6) and incorporates means (5) for adjusting the total length of said supporting elements (3), wherein said modules are arranged in at least three parallel strips of modules, in which said ties and/or struts (8, 9) laying in vertical planes are located, in a first and in a third one of said strips, in two parallel vertical planes, at the borders of the whole set of three strips and oriented according to a first direction, while the ties and/or struts located in a central strip lay in vertical planes oriented according a second direction, orthogonal to the first one.

2. A modular structure according to claim 1 , wherein said means for adjusting the total length of said supporting elements (3) consist of a threaded joint (5) between of each one of said bases (4) and the corresponding vertical supporting element (3), and wherein each of said bases (4) also incorporates hinge means (7) connecting said flat base plate (6) to said vertical supporting element (3), to adapt the orientation of said flat base plate (6) to the ground surface.

3. A modular structure according to claim 2, wherein said hinge means are spherical hinge means (7).

4. A modular structure according to claim 3, wherein each of said spherical hinge means (7) comprises a cylindrical collar rigidly fixed at the center of said flat base plate (6) with its axis orthogonal to the plane of said base plate, a first hinge member in the shape of a spherical segment resting on said base plate (6) within said cylindrical collar with its convex side up- wards, a cylindrical pivot (5) externally threaded, of a smaller diameter than said cylindrical collar and having, at its lower end, a second hinge member in the shape of a spherical segment with its concave side downwards, said lower end of said cylindrical pivot (5) being inserted in said cylindrical collar, and an internally threaded sleeve fitting said cylindrical pivot (5) and externally coupled with the hollow lower end of said vertical supporting element (3).

5. A modular structure according to any one of claims 1-4, wherein, for every group of nine modules divided in said three strips, there are provided a total of at least four couples of ties (8) laying in two parallel vertical planes at the borders to the whole set of said three strips, and at least four couples of ties (8) in as many vertical planes of said central strip, oriented in a direction orthogonal to that of said border planes.

6. A modular structure according to any one of claims 1-5, wherein said first and third strips of modules have a width of at least 6.50 m. 7. A modular structure according to claim 6, wherein said first and third strips of modules have a width of about 6.80 m and said central strip has a width of about 5 m.

8. A modular structure according to any one of claims 1-5, wherein said first and third strips of modules have a width of about 8.80 m and said central strip has a width comprised between 2 and 5 m.

9. A modular structure according to any one of claims 1-8, wherein the length of each of said modules is comprised between 2 and 5 m.

10. A modular structure according to any one of claims 1-9, comprising a ramp (2) for the access to the upper level for each group of said three parallel strips of modules, oriented with the driveway parallel to the direction of said strips.

11. A modular structure according to any one of claims 1-9, comprising a ramp (2) for the access to the upper level for each two groups of said three parallel strips of modules, oriented with the driveway parallel to the di- rection of said strips and located at the centre of said two groups of strips.

13. A modular structure according to claims 10 or 11 , wherein said three strips of modules have a total length of at least six modules.

14. A modular structure according to any one of claims 1-13, wherein each one of said node elements comprises a first tubular section coaxially insertable in a hollow upper end of the said vertical supporting element, having, regularly spaced out around its external surface, first pierced connection plates or eye hooks for connection with said ties and/or struts (8, 10), a horizontal plate for supporting said edge beams, fixed at the upper end of said first tubular section and a second tubular section over said plate, integral and coaxial with said first section, having second pierced connection plates, regularly spaced out around its external surface, lying in vertical planes slightly shifted with respect to the axial planes.

15. A modular structure according to any one of claims 4-14, wherein each one of said bases (4) also comprises one or more reinforcing elements to stiffen the connection between said flat base plate and said cylindrical collar. 16. A modular structure according to any one of claims 6-15, wherein the clearance of the upper level of said modules is at least 2.10 m from the level of the corresponding bases (4).

17. A modular structure according to any one of claims 6-15, wherein the clearance of the upper level of said modules is at least 4.20 m from the level of the corresponding bases (4).