EP4684070A1

EP4684070A1 - Device for splicing reinforcement cages

Info

Publication number: EP4684070A1
Application number: EP24719604.1A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Stephen Render
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2023-03-20
Filing date: 2024-03-18
Publication date: 2026-01-28
Also published as: WO2024194619A1; GB2628354A; AU2024241097A1

Abstract

A device (50A) for splicing together end-to-end a first reinforcement cage (10) and a second reinforcement cage (20), each of the first and second reinforcement cages (10, 20) extending in a longitudinal axial direction (A) between respective opposite ends thereof, the first reinforcement cage (10) comprising a suspension band (28) adjacent one of its ends and the second reinforcement cage (20) carrying the said device (50A) adjacent one of its ends, wherein the device (50A) comprises: an engagement portion (60) fixedly mounted on or with respect to a portion (22) of the second cage (20) adjacent its one end and configured such that at least a detent portion (80) thereof is spaced from the second cage (20) in a transverse direction (T) relative to the longitudinal axial direction (A) of the second cage (20) so as to define a transverse suspension gap (G) between the said detent portion (80) and the portion (22) of the second cage (20) on which the device (50A) is carried, the suspension gap (G) being configured for receiving therein the suspension band (28) on the first cage (10) as the first and second cages (10, 20) are brought together into a splicing spatial relationship by relative axial movement thereof; and a gate member (50) pivotally mounted on or with respect to the portion (22) of the second cage (20) adjacent its one end and selectively pivotally configurable in either an open configuration, in which the suspension band (28) on the first cage (10) can be inserted into or received in the suspension gap (G) past the gate member (50) during the axial relative movement of the first and second cages (10, 20), or a closed configuration in which the suspension band (28) on the first cage (10), once it has been located in the suspension gap (G), is prevented from being removed therefrom by the gate member; wherein the gate member (50) is pivotable about its mounting on or with respect to the portion (22) of the second cage (20) in, or so as to define, a pivot plane (P), and the engagement portion (60) of the device (50A) lies substantially in that pivot plane (P).

Description

DEVICE FOR SPLICING REINFORCEMENT CAGES

TECHNICAL FIELD

This invention relates to a device for splicing together reinforcement cages, such as pile cages and diaphragm wall cages. More particularly the invention relates to a device for splicing together such reinforcement cages in a stable and secure end-to-end manner. The invention also relates to a combination of at least two reinforcement cages spliced together using one or more of the splicing devices. The invention further relates to a method for splicing together at least one pair of reinforcement cages using one or more of the splicing devices, and to piles, diaphragm walls and other reinforcing structures formed using reinforcement cages that have been spliced together according to the method.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION AND PRIOR ART

Reinforcement cages such as pile cages are used in a wide range of civil engineering and construction applications, principally in the formation of concrete piles in the construction of buildings, underground car parks, road or rail or other bridges, and other structures. Pile cages not only provide reinforcement for the concrete of the pile, but they also provide a means of attaching or anchoring part(s) of the building, bridge or other structure to the built pile itself.

As used herein, the term “pile cage” means a generally cylindrical, or alternatively other cross-sectional shaped, assembly or network of a plurality (typically at least about 4, 5 or 6, or possibly more than six) of steel (or other metal) reinforcing bars (which are typically referred to in the industry as “rebars”) each extending in a generally longitudinal direction (defined as a direction parallel to the longitudinal axis of the pile to be formed around the cage) and anchored together by an arrangement of one or more helical wires or bands welded to the rebars to form a rigidifying cage structure which maintains the relative positioning, separation and alignment of the cage bars during the subsequent formation of the pile around the cage. Thus, a pile cage is a relatively stiff and structurally stable framelike structure, and is often manufactured off-site in a dedicated assembly plant and transported by vehicle to the building site ready for use in the building of the required piles.

Typically a hole of the required size and cross-sectional shape to form the pile is formed in the ground by drilling and is then at least partially lined (to prevent wall collapse) with a reusable casing. A pile cage is then lowered into the lined hole, and wet concrete is then poured therein, embedding the cage within it. The casing is then withdrawn, for re-use in the building of another pile, while the concrete is still wet, and the concrete is then allowed to cure to form the pile. Frequently, however, it is necessary to form particularly tall piles, i.e. of a height greater than the length of a typical single individual pile cage. In this case it is common practice to splice together pairs of pile cages end-to-end, i.e. to connect the top end of a lower pile cage to the bottom end of an upper pile cage so that the two cages are securely interconnected together end-to-end, prior to the spliced cage combination being lowered into the prepared hole ready for the pouring of concrete therein to form a pile of the required enhanced height or length. Often as many as three, four or even more than four individual pile cage sections can be spliced together end-to-end in sequential pairs and lowered stagewise into the hole until a single unified multi-section pile cage of the required total height/length has been formed. During the splicing and stagewise lowering operation each successive pile cage section is generally accurately positioned (e.g. using a crane) directly above an exposed upper portion of the pile cage section below it, then spliced thereto by whatever splicing device or devices is/are being employed for that job.

To assist the accurate relative placement of the respective ends of a given pair of cages during the splicing operation, it is usual for an end portion of one of the cages (e.g. the top end portion of a lower one of the cages of the pair) to be “cranked”, which is to say the rebars of that top end portion are bent radially inwardly a short distance so as to form that top end portion of the lower cage with a diameter of somewhat reduced size compared with the diameter of the bottom end portion of the upper cage (which is uncranked). Thus, the top end portion of the lower cage forms a spigot-like extension of the lower cage which fits radially inside and a short distance axially up into the interior of the slightly larger-diameter bottom end portion of the upper cage, thereby facilitating their stable and secure splicing together end-to-end as the appropriate number of splicing devices mounted on one of the cages (e.g. on the bottom end portion of the upper cage) are actuated to effect the secure splicing connection together of the two cages in an end-to-end manner.

Although the formation of circular-sectioned piles using cylindrical pile cages are generally the most common forms of reinforcing structures formed using such spliced reinforcement cages, in the formation of concrete reinforcing structures other than circular-sectioned piles, reinforcement cages of other types and cross-sectional shapes may be used instead. For example, diaphragm walls, such as those of rectangular or even L-shaped or T-shaped cross-sections, may be formed in an analogous manner to cylindrical piles, but instead of using one or more cylindrical pile cages one or more reinforcement cages of an appropriate alternative cross-sectional shape may be used instead. Such alternatively sectional-shaped reinforcement cages may likewise be used in spliced pluralities thereof as the physical needs of the structure to be formed dictate, with corresponding pairs of such alternatively shaped reinforcement cages being spliced end-to-end in a corresponding manner using corresponding splicing devices.

However, splicing together pairs of reinforcement cages, whether of the pile, diaphragm wall or other types, presents various technical difficulties if the splicing is to be effected efficiently and reliably. It is also a procedure that comes with ever increasing health and safety risks that need to be addressed, such as mitigating against risks associated with workers manually assisting certain steps in the overall splicing operation or even splicing device failure if correct mechanical specifications are not adhered to for some reason.

Various pile and other cage splicing devices and splicing methods are known in the art. One early known cage splicing system is that disclosed in published International Patent Application W02007/068898 (also published as EP1963579A). Here a supported lower (or alternatively upper) cage is fitted with a circumferential suspension band, e.g. by welding to the longitudinal rebars thereof, and the upper (or alternatively lower) pile cage is fitted with a series of welded support plates each with a screw-threaded aperture therein to receive a respective suspension bolt which is screwable therein from the outside of the cages once the upper and lower cages have been correctly positioned and aligned. However, this known system is rather crude and mechanically unreliable, due mainly to the cantilevered nature of the anchored suspension bolts that have to bear the full loads exerted by the weight of the spliced cages, as well as the propensity for inaccurate positional placement of the suspension band and the suspension bolts relative to each other.

More recently I have myself proposed some new reinforcement cage splicing systems which address and ameliorate the shortcomings inherent in the known system of EP1963579A above by avoiding the use of mere cantilevered suspension bolts. For example, the reinforcement cage splicing devices disclosed in my UK Patents nos. GB2531376B and GB2547283B rely on the creation of a transverse (or radial, in the case of circular-sectioned cages) suspension gap between the respective end portions of the two cages being spliced, wherein the suspension gap is formed by a transversely (or radially) extending anchoring portion fixed to one of the cages, and that suspension gap is then selectively bridged or closed-off by any of various designs of suspension member (e.g. an elongate solid or hollow body) which are insertable from outside the cages to bridge and close-off the suspension gap once the suspension band on the other of the cages has been inserted therein as the cages are brought axially together into their splicing relative configuration. As an improvement on even these newer proposed splicing systems, my more recent International Patent Application WO2016/207652A1 (granted as e.g. EP3314067B1) proposes a different and more efficient and reliable form of cage-mounted gate means that bridges or closes-off the suspension gap once the suspension band on the first (usually the lower one) of the cages has been inserted therein as the cages are brought axially together end-to-end into their splicing relative configuration. In this alternative arrangement the gate means is selectively configurable in either an open configuration, in which the suspension band on the first (usually lower) cage can be inserted into the suspension gap past the open gate means during axial relative movement of the cages towards one another, or a closed configuration, in which the suspension band on the first (usually lower) cage, once located in the suspension gap, is prevented from being removed therefrom via the closed gate means, and the gate means carried on the second (usually upper) cage is moveable between those open and closed configurations by virtue of at least a portion thereof being moveable by pivoting. WO2016/207652 A 1 discloses various example forms of pivotable gate member(s) forming such pivotal gate means. One such version of a cage splicing device based on a pivotable gate member as in WO2016/207652A1 is currently being marketed by me under the trade mark SUPERLATCH ®.

These most recently proposed cage-mounted splicing devices based on one or more pivotable gate members go far in addressing and ameliorating many of the shortcomings and limitations of the earlier known cage splicing devices already proposed in the art, but there is still room for improvement over even the known pivotal gate means-based arrangements of WO2016/207652A1 . In particular, I have recently found that in certain circumstances, especially those which have begun to become more prevalent in the piling industry, even these known pivotal gate means-based arrangements may have potential shortcomings, in particular in terms of the propensity of rebars of the first (usually lower) cage to foul against parts of the splicing devices carried on the second (usually upper) cage as the cages are brought axially together. Such fouling tends to become more prevalent and a more taxing problem to tackle and ameliorate in the case of smaller-diameter cages, where typically there are smaller circumferential gaps between adjacent rebars working around a given cage. Such smaller sized and thus more congested cages are becoming more common in the piling industry, owing to a growing trend towards narrower pile shafts, which are becoming more favoured for environmental reasons (e.g. because they involve less digging (and thus lower diesel consumption of plant machinery), less land-fill tax for dumping of spoil, less cement production (thereby giving energy savings), and less aggregate usage (thereby lowering materials costs). Moreover, the increased crowding and smaller clearance gaps between adjacent cage rebars is often exacerbated by the crankingin of such rebars on the cage carrying the suspension band, which is the very cage that is to engage with the various splicing devices on the second cage and therefore whose rebars’ propensity for fouling against parts of those splicing devices can present even more of a problem. Furthermore, the problem of rebars’ fouling may be exacerbated even further by dimensional variations occurring during the cages’ manufacture, especially in rebar spacings whose dimensional tolerances may typically be quite generous. The problem may be yet further exacerbated by the occurrence of alignments of one or more splicing devices disposed around the second cage that are non-strictly-radial (or non-strictly-perpendicularly transverse), e.g. owing to manufacturing errors.

The above propensity of rebars’ of the first cage tending to foul against parts of the splicing device(s) mounted on the second cage in arrangements where smaller cages are favoured, and thus smaller and more congested rebar spacings are more often found, may typically become even more problematic in the case of those splicing device designs (such as some of those of WO2016/207652A1) which employ especially wide multi-component pivoting mechanisms.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is a primary object of the present invention to address and ameliorate, or at least partially solve, the above shortcomings of known prior art reinforcement cage splicing systems, in particular the pivotal-type cage splicing devices disclosed in WO2016/207652A1, and to provide a form of reinforcement cage splicing device which reduces the tendency or risk of cage bars of the first cage (i.e. the one carrying the suspension band) to foul against parts of the one or more splicing devices carried on the second cage, especially in the case of smaller sized cages with relatively smaller rebar spacings.

Accordingly, in a first aspect the present invention provides a device for splicing together end-to-end a first reinforcement cage and a second reinforcement cage, each of the first and second reinforcement cages extending in a longitudinal axial direction between respective opposite ends thereof, the first reinforcement cage comprising a suspension band adjacent one of its ends and the second reinforcement cage carrying the said device adjacent one of its ends, wherein the device comprises: an engagement portion fixedly mounted on or with respect to a portion of the second cage adjacent its one end and configured such that at least a detent portion thereof is spaced from the second cage in a transverse direction relative to the longitudinal axial direction of the second cage so as to define a transverse suspension gap between the said detent portion and the portion of the second cage on which the device is carried, the suspension gap being configured for receiving therein the suspension band on the first cage as the first and second cages are brought together into a splicing spatial relationship by relative axial movement thereof; and a gate member pivotally mounted on or with respect to the portion of the second cage adjacent its one end and selectively pivotally configurable in either an open configuration, in which the suspension band on the first cage can be inserted into or received in the suspension gap past the gate member during the axial relative movement of the first and second cages, or a closed configuration in which the suspension band on the first cage, once it has been located in the suspension gap, is prevented from being removed therefrom by the gate member; wherein the gate member is pivotable about its mounting on or with respect to the portion of the second cage in, or so as to define, a pivot plane, and the engagement portion of the device lies substantially in that pivot plane.

Thus, in accordance with the invention, the engagement portion of the device and the pivotable gate member have been brought into a substantially mono-planar spatial relationship, so that the gate member+engagement portion combination, once the gate member has been pivoted into its closed configuration, especially against or in engagement with the detent portion of the engagement portion, is narrower than in prior art arrangements, thereby reducing the amount of width space taken up the device’s essential components, whilst enabling it to operate in an effective manner that still makes use of the advantageous pivotal gate means principle.

In many practical implementations of embodiments of the invention, the first and second cages may each be substantially circular in cross-section, and thus in such embodiments the transverse suspension gap may be a radial suspension gap, i.e. one which extends substantially radially relative to the cages’ axial directions. However, alternatively in certain other embodiments of the invention, the first and second cages may each be of a noncircular cross-section, e.g. rectangular or even L-shaped or T-shaped cross-sections, and so in such embodiments the configuration of the suspension gap as being merely “transverse” to the axial direction of the cages is more appropriate.

In most practical embodiments of the invention, the transverse or radial suspension gap may be present on at least two opposite sides of the second cage, and especially in the case of the majority of cross-sectional shapes of first and second cages the transverse or radial suspension gap may be present on substantially all sides of, i.e. all around, the second cage, such as in the form of an annular suspension gap in the case of circular- sectioned first and second cages.

In many practical implementations of embodiments of the invention, the suspension band carried on the first cage may typically be mounted externally (i.e. transversely or radially externally) of the rebars of the first cage.

In many typical implementations of embodiments of the invention, an end or mouth portion of the first cage on or adjacent to which the suspension band is mounted may be of a different, especially a smaller, transverse width from the transverse width of the end portion of the second cage on or adjacent to which the device of the invention is mounted, i.e. the end or mouth portion of the first cage may be cranked inwardly, so that the suspension band mounted on the first cage more reliably or more readily lies within the said transverse suspension gap formed between the detent portion of the engagement portion and the portion of the second cage on which the device is carried, as the cages are brought axially together into their spliced relationship.

In the preceding paragraph, the reference to the end or mouth portion of the first cage being cranked inwardly such that it is of a smaller transverse width compared with the transverse width of the end portion of the second cage assumes that in such arrangements it is the narrower of the two cages, i.e. the first cage, that carries the suspension band. However, it is to be understood that in other, alternative, arrangements still within the scope of the invention, it may be possible for the relative locations/positionings of the suspension band and the splicing device to be reversed, i.e. so that it on the cranked-in smaller-dimensioned, i.e. “inner”, cage that the splicing device is mounted and on the wider-dimensioned, i.e. “outer”, cage that the suspension band is mounted. It is to be understood and expected that the general operation and principles of construction of such alternative embodiment arrangements will be substantially the same as the more typical arrangements referred to above.

Furthermore, in the practical deployment of many embodiments of the invention, the first cage (i.e. that carrying the suspension band) may be a lower reinforcement cage of a pair to be spliced together end-to-end, and the second cage (i.e. that carrying the splicing device) may be an upper reinforcement cage of the pair to be spliced together end-to-end. However, it is to be understood that in the practical deployment of certain other embodiments of the invention, it may be possible for the arrangement to be inverted (or reversed), i.e. such that the first cage (i.e. that carrying the suspension band) may be an upper reinforcement cage of a pair to be spliced together end-to-end, and the second cage (i.e. that carrying the splicing device) may be a lower reinforcement cage of the pair to be spliced together end-to-end.

Moreover, in such “inverted/reversed” embodiments within the scope of the invention, it is to be understood that the orientation of the splicing device and its component parts will typically be inverted (i.e. inverted through 180° about an axis perpendicular to the longitudinal axial direction of the cages) as compared with its orientation in the more usual or typical “right way up” embodiment arrangements, as described in detail hereinbelow.

In some embodiments of the invention, the pivotal mounting of the gate member on or with respect to the portion of the second cage may be via a base plate, especially a substantially planar base plate, fixedly mounted or attached, e.g. by welding, to a rebar of the second cage. In such embodiments the pivot mounting of the gate member may comprise a pivot bolt or pin welded at one end thereof to the base plate.

In accordance with the general principle underpinning embodiments of the present invention, the gate member is pivotable about its mounting on or with respect to the portion of the first cage in, or so as to define, a pivot plane, and the engagement portion of the device lies substantially in that pivot plane.

The pivot plane may be defined as a plane in space within which a main body of the gate member moves or travels, or which is contained within a main body of the gate member as it moves or travels, as the gate member pivots about its mounting on or with respect to the portion of the second cage. In some embodiment forms, the gate member may be formed as a generally flat-faced or flattened body, e g. of cut or machined steel, and the pivot plane may thus be defined as a plane in space which is coincident (or coplanar) with or is parallel to a general plane defined by one or more of the flat faces or the flattened body of the gate member itself.

It is to be understood that in practical embodiments of invention within the above definition, it is at least a portion of, especially at least a major or majority portion of, the engagement portion of the device that lies substantially in the said pivot plane defined by the pivoting motion of the gate member. Further it is to be understood that, in referring to the engagement portion of the device “lying substantially in the said pivot plane”, it is meant that at least a portion of, especially at least a major or majority portion of, a thickness of the engagement portion (i.e. a dimension of the engagement portion that is perpendicular (or substantially perpendicular) to the said pivot plane) lies approximately or substantially in or coincident with, or approximately or substantially coplanar with respect to, the said pivot plane.

In some embodiments of the invention, this co-planar or mono-planar relationship between the pivot plane of or defined by the gate member and the engagement portion of the device may be achieved in any of various ways:

In one such constructional variant, the engagement portion of the device which is fixedly mounted on or with respect to the second cage may be fixedly mounted on or with respect to the above-mentioned base plate (on which the gate member is pivotally mounted) via a bridging portion. For this purpose, the engagement portion may be integral with, or may be formed as a unitary component with, or may be formed as an extension of, a discrete bridging portion, which discrete bridging portion is itself fixedly mounted on or attached to the base plate, e.g. by welding. The engagement portion and the bridging portion may especially be co-planar with each other, so that they both lie substantially in the same plane, and especially in order that the resulting planes of the engagement portion and the pivot plane defined by the gate member end up being substantially co-planar, in accordance with the invention.

In another such constructional variant, the engagement portion of the device which is fixedly mounted on or with respect to the second cage may be fixedly mounted on or with respect to the above-mentioned base plate via a bridging portion which is not itself a discrete component that needs mounting or attaching (e.g. by welding) onto the base plate, but instead the bridging portion may be an integral “bridging portion”-forming portion of a three- section unitary base plate component which comprises not only that “bridging portion”- forming portion but also an “attachment portion” via which it is fixedly mounted or attached, e.g. by welding, to a rebar of the second cage, and further also comprises an “engagement portion”-forming portion which constitutes the said engagement portion. However, in this case, in order that the resulting planes of the engagement portion-forming portion of the three-section unitary base plate and the pivot plane defined by the gate member end up being substantially co-planar, in accordance with the invention, the junction between the engagement portion-forming portion of the three-section unitary base plate and the bridging portion-forming portion thereof may comprise or include a bend, step or crank, e.g. formed by means of hot-forging (or other suitable technique). In the splicing device of the invention the engagement portion, which may be cut from steel plate and take the form of a generally flat planar plate or web, comprises a detent portion, which in many embodiments defines a part of the engagement portion with which the gate member engages or abuts once the gate member has been pivoted into its closed pivotal configuration. The detent portion may be, or may be comprised within or at or adjacent, a distal end portion of the engagement portion, which is to say an end portion of the engagement portion remote from an opposite end portion thereof via which the engagement portion is mounted on or with respect to the second cage.

In some such embodiments the detent portion may comprise a recess or indent, such a generally V-shaped recess or indent, into which fits a correspondingly or matchingly shaped nose portion, especially a protruding nose portion, of the gate member as the latter pivots into its closed pivotal configuration.

In many embodiments the detent portion, or at least its portion that comprises the above- mentioned recess or indent, may be configured and/or dimensioned such that it (i.e. the detent portion itself or at least its portion that comprises the recess or indent) is substantially wholly contained within a pair of boundary planes defined by the thickness of the engagement portion. In other words, in such embodiments the detent portion, or at least its portion that comprises the recess or indent, substantially does not protrude or extend in a sideways direction (i.e. a circumferential or tangential or lateral direction, or even perpendicularly with respect to the axial direction of the second cage) to either side of a pair of boundary planes defined by the thickness of the engagement portion.

In some embodiments of the splicing device of the invention, at least one of the detent portion of the engagement portion and the nose portion of the gate member, or the detent portion and the nose portion of the gate member together, may include catch means, for enabling the detent portion of the engagement portion and the nose portion of the gate member to inter-engage with each other such as to substantially prevent them moving or sliding apart or relative to each other in a sideways direction (i.e. a circumferential or tangential or lateral direction, or even in a perpendicular direction relative to the axial direction of the second cage) once the gate member has been pivoted into its closed configuration, especially against or in engagement with the detent portion.

Such a catch means may for example take the form of a locator pin or bolt fixedly mounted in and protruding from a bearing face of one of the detent portion and the nose portion of the gate member (especially a bearing face of the detent portion) and a corresponding locator hole, recess or indent formed in and extending into a bearing face of the other of the detent portion and the nose portion of the gate member (especially a bearing face of the nose portion of the gate member), into which locator hole, recess or indent the locator pin or bolt is insertable or locatable as the gate member is pivoted into its closed configuration, especially against or in engagement with the detent portion. Other example mechanical forms of mutually inter-engageable catch means (i.e. sideways-anchoring or sideways- detention/locking means) may of course be available and used instead, either alone or in combination with the aforesaid version of such catch means.

In many embodiments of the splicing device of the invention, the device may additionally include a biasing means, especially a spring, e.g. a coil spring, for biasing the gate member pivotally towards its closed pivotal configuration.

In embodiments of the splicing device of the invention, the gate member may include an abutment or bearing edge or edge face against which the suspension band on the first cage can abut once the suspension band has been inserted into the suspension gap (as the first and second cages are brought axially together into their spliced relationship) and the gate member has pivoted into its closed configuration. Such an abutment of the suspension band against the abutment or bearing edge or edge face of the gate member may occur especially once the two cages have been spliced together and have begun to be lifted together as a pair in a next stage of an operation to insert them into a prepared hole in the ground during an overall pile or reinforcing wall construction operation. In this manner the abutment of the suspension band against the abutment or bearing edge or edge face of the gate member serves to bear the principal load exerted by the weight of the cages once spliced together. In some embodiment forms the abutment or bearing edge or edge face of the gate member may comprise a substantially straight abutment or bearing edge or edge face.

In some embodiments of the splicing device of the invention, the gate member may further include a drive edge or edge face, especially a drive edge or edge face on a generally opposite side of the gate member from the above-mentioned abutment or bearing edge or edge face thereof, the drive edge or edge face being configured for enabling the suspension band on the first cage to abuttingly slide against and past it and in so doing cause the gate member to pivot back towards its open configuration as the suspension band is inserted into the suspension gap as the first and second cages are brought axially together. In some embodiment forms the drive edge or edge face may for example be configured as a straight drive edge or edge face which is obliquely inclined relative to the axial direction of the second cage when the gate member is in its closed configuration and/or is chamfered or bevelled or convexly curved to facilitate the sliding abutment of the suspension band thereagainst such that it pushes the gate member pivotally “out of the way” (i.e. in a pivoting direction from the gate member’s closed configuration towards its open configuration) as the suspension band is inserted into the suspension gap.

In such embodiments in which the gate member comprises both the above-mentioned abutment or bearing edge or edge face and the above-mentioned drive edge or edge face, the above-mentioned nose portion of the gate member may be located therebetween, especially therebetween and on an opposite side of the gate member from its pivot mounting on or with respect to the second cage.

In a second aspect of the present invention there is provided a splicing device per se for splicing together end-to-end a first reinforcement cage and a second reinforcement cage, each of the first and second reinforcement cages extending in a longitudinal axial direction between respective opposite ends thereof, the first reinforcement cage comprising a suspension band adjacent one of its ends and the second reinforcement cage being for carrying the said device adjacent one of its ends, wherein the splicing device per se and/or the features thereof is/are as defined in the context of the above first aspect of the invention or any embodiment thereof defined or described hereinabove or hereinbelow.

Thus, the splicing device may be constructed and provided as a discrete item per se, independent of and separate from the first and second reinforcement cages themselves that are to be spliced together by means thereof. The structural components of the splicing device per se may for example be pre-manufactured and supplied separately, e.g. for attachment to or assembly with a second reinforcement cage in a dedicated off-site facility, ready for transport of the prepared second - and optionally also first - reinforcement cage(s) to a particular desired site at which the splicing together of the cages is actually to take place during a pile or reinforcing wall construction operation. Alternatively the attaching of the splicing device per se to, or assembly thereof with, a second reinforcement cage may be carried out on-site, even at the actual site at which the splicing of the cages is to take place during the construction operation.

In the putting into practice any embodiments of the invention, any number of individual splicing devices may be used to splice together the first and second reinforcement cages, as desired or as necessary. In many practical embodiments of the invention, the first and second reinforcement cages may be spliced together using a plurality of splicing devices, especially a plurality of like splicing devices, and especially a plurality of such splicing devices disposed equi-distantly or equi-angularly around the first and second cages, especially equi-distantly or equi-angularly around the peripheral or perimeter portions of the first and second cages. Each such splicing device may be a splicing device as defined in the context of the above first and/or second aspects of the invention or any embodiment thereof defined or described hereinabove or hereinbelow. In practice the number of splicing devices used may for example depend on the size, scale or weight of the pair of reinforcement cages to be spliced together. Frequently, and for example in the case of splicing e.g. a pair of 0.5 tonne pile cages, three splicing devices each disposed at 120° to each other around the pile cage assembly may typically be suitable.

Also provided by the present invention, in a third aspect thereof, is, in combination, a second reinforcement cage and one or more - especially a plurality of - splicing devices carried thereon adjacent one of its ends, the second reinforcement cage and the or each splicing device each respectively being as defined respectively in the above first and/or second aspects of the invention or any embodiment thereof defined or described hereinabove or hereinbelow.

Thus, according to embodiments of the combined second reinforcement cage+splicing device(s) of this third aspect of the invention, the splicing device(s) and second reinforcement cage may be provided as a discrete assembly or unit, independent of the first reinforcement cage to which the second reinforcement cage is spliceable by means of the device(s). Again, the second reinforcement cage and the components of the attached splicing device(s) may for example be pre-manufactured and pre-assembled in a discrete preparative step, e.g. in a dedicated off-site facility, ready for transport of the combined second reinforcement cage - with the splicing device(s) pre-attached thereto - to a particular desired site at which the splicing to the first reinforcement cage is actually to take place during a pile or reinforcing wall construction operation.

Also provided by the present invention, in a fourth aspect thereof, is, in combination, a first reinforcement cage and a second reinforcement cage, the first and second reinforcement cages being spliced together end-to-end by use of one or more, especially a plurality of, splicing devices each being according to the first and/or second aspects of the invention or any embodiment thereof defined or described hereinabove or hereinbelow. Thus, according to this fourth aspect the combined first and second spliced reinforcement cages may be provided as a discrete assembly or unit ready for being inserted into, or already formed in situ, a pre-prepared hole in the ground in which a pile or other reinforcing wall structure is to be formed.

According to yet another, fifth, aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of splicing together end-to-end a first reinforcement cage and a second reinforcement cage, each of the first and second reinforcement cages extending in a longitudinal axial direction between respective opposite ends thereof, the first reinforcement cage comprising a suspension band adjacent one of its ends and the second reinforcement cage carrying adjacent one of its ends one or more splicing devices according to the first and/or second aspects of the invention or any embodiment thereof defined or described hereinabove or hereinbelow, wherein the method comprises:

(i) with the or each gate member of the or each respective device configured in its open pivotal configuration, bringing together the first and second reinforcement cages into a splicing spatial relationship by relative movement of the first and second reinforcement cages in said axial direction such that the suspension band on the first reinforcement cage is inserted into or received within the suspension gap defined between the or the respective detent portion of the engagement portion of the or the respective device and the portion of the second cage on which the or the respective device is carried; and

(ii) configuring the or each gate member of the or each respective device, by pivoting thereof about its respective pivot mounting on the second cage, from its open pivotal configuration into its closed pivotal configuration, whereupon the suspension band is then prevented from being removed from the suspension gap by the or the respective gate member; and optionally wherein upon completion of step (ii) at least a or a respective abutment or bearing edge or edge face of the or each respective gate member and the suspension band are abuttingly engaged, so that as the upper one of the first and second reinforcement cages is lifted and/or lowered so the other one of the first and second reinforcement cages spliced thereto is lifted and/or lowered with it.

Thus, according to the above-defined method of the fifth aspect, once the gate member has been configured, by pivotal movement thereof about its pivot mounting on the second cage, into its closed pivotal configuration, by virtue of the suspension band now being prevented from being removed from the suspension gap by the or the respective gate member of the or each respective device, the first and second reinforcement cages are thereby securely spliced together, in which condition at least the or the respective abutment or bearing edge or edge face of the or each respective gate member and the suspension band are abuttingly engaged, so that as the relevant one, i.e. the upper one in many embodiments, of the first and second reinforcement cages is liftable (e.g. by use of a crane) so the other one of the first and second reinforcement cages spliced thereto is liftable with it.

According to yet another, sixth, aspect of the present invention, there is provided a pile or other reinforcing structure constructed using at least one plurality of reinforcement cages embedded therein, the cages of the plurality having been spliced together, prior to the pouring of concrete to form the pile or other reinforcing structure, by means of one or more, especially a plurality of, splicing devices according to the first and/or second aspects of the invention or any embodiment thereof defined or described hereinabove or hereinbelow.

In practical embodiments of the invention the suspension band on the first cage may be attached thereto by any suitable means, e.g. by welding directly onto the rebars of the first cage, as is already known in the art. In some such embodiments the suspension band on the first cage may be formed as a continuous suspension band whose length may extend over substantially the whole circumferential or lateral length of the first cage (i.e. substantially complete circumferential length thereof in the case of a cylindrical first cage, or substantially complete lateral length thereof in the case of a first cage of a non-circular, e.g. rectangular, cross-sectional shape). Alternatively the suspension band may have a length sufficient merely to extend over and across only some of, e.g. at least 2 or 3 or more of, the individual rebars of the first cage, to each of which rebars the suspension band may again be attached, e.g. by welding. However, in other such embodiments, e.g. in an effort to save on materials costs, the suspension band may be of a modular form, in which the suspension band comprises a plurality of discrete modular suspension band segments. Thus, as the term is used herein, “suspension band” is to be construed as encompassing any and all of the above forms, i.e. both continuous (i.e. circular or annular, or full-lateral- length), or part-continuous, as well as modular (i.e. plural discrete or segmented) suspension bands.

Whilst in many practical embodiments of the invention the reinforcement cages to be spliced together by the splicing device(s) may be substantially circular in cross-section, in order to form generally cylindrical shaped piles, it is to be understood that embodiments of the invention are not limited to reinforcement cages of circular cross-section, but other cross- sectional shapes may also be possible. For example, reinforcement cages having cross- sectional shapes being non-circular, e.g. elliptical, rectangular, square, L-shaped, T- shaped, or even of other shapes, may all be spliced together by use of one or more splicing devices according to the invention or any embodiments thereof defined or described hereinabove or hereinbelow, so as to create reinforcing wall or other structures of any alternative corresponding such physical shapes or forms. Of course, in practice in the process of drilling the initial hole for insertion therein of the spliced reinforcement cages (optionally in combination with an appropriate shoring device or material), an appropriately shaped drill or form of drilling rig and/or excavation equipment or arrangement may need to be employed in order to form the correctly shaped hole or void for receiving the correspondingly shaped reinforcement cages therein.

Within the scope of this application it is expressly intended that the various aspects, embodiments, examples and alternatives set out in the preceding paragraphs, in the claims and/or in the following detailed description and drawings, and in particular the individual features thereof, may be taken independently or in any combination. Thus, any one or more features referred to or described with reference to one particular embodiment should be construed as being applicable to any or all embodiments, unless expressly stated otherwise or if such features are incompatible.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Various embodiments of the present invention in its various aspects will now be described in detail, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a schematic elevational view of a pair of typical pile (or other reinforcement) cages about to be spliced together end-to-end using two or more (in this case two, by way of example) splicing devices according to an embodiment of the invention;

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged side view of one of the complete splicing devices according to the embodiment of the invention as shown as part of the arrangement of FIG. 1 ;

FIGURE 3 is a sectional view on lines A-A in FIG. 2 of the splicing device of the embodiment of FIG. 2, showing in clearer detail the in-plane configuration of the gate member and the engagement portion of the device as the gate member is pivoted from its open configuration to its closed configuration against the engagement portion;

FIGURE 4 is a side view of part of an alternative structural arrangement similar to and closely corresponding to that of FIG. 2, but showing a slightly different arrangement by which the bridging portion is attached to the base plate of the splicing device;

FIGURE 5 is a schematic elevational view of an alternative, inverted (or “upsidedown”) embodiment arrangement of a pair of pile (or other reinforcement) cages about to be spliced together end-to-end using two or more (in this case two, by way of example) of the same, but inverted, splicing devices as used in the embodiment arrangement of FIGS. 1 to 3, in which alternative arrangement the “lower” and “upper” identities of the “first” and “second” cages have been inverted or reversed. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

Referring firstly to FIG. 1 , here there is shown schematically a pair of generally cylindrical pile cages - namely lower (first) pile cage 10 and upper (second) pile cage 20 - ready for being brought together for splicing in an overlapping end-to-end relationship, as depicted by arrow S. Each pile cage 10, 20 comprises a respective array of e.g. six generally axially arranged elongate steel cage rebars 12, 22 (although only four in each cage are explicitly shown for clarity) of a conventional type. The rebars 12, 22 of each cage 10, 20 are united into their respective strong and substantially rigid cage assemblies 10, 20 by means of a respective framework of one or more external helical steel wires 16, 26 and/or internal or external steel bands (e.g. that shown as 15) wound around the respective peripheries of each cage 10, 20 and welded to their respective rebars 12, 22.

The upper end portion C of the lower (first) cage 10 is “cranked”, i.e. tapered radially inwardly towards its open upper end, in order to form a spigot section C of that lower (first) cage 10 that is dimensioned so as to fit comfortably within the open lower mouth portion M of the upper (second) cage 20. A plurality of splicing devices 50A, 50B, etc are carried on respective rebars 22 of, and disposed around the periphery of, the upper (second) cage 20 ready for effecting their splicing operation in conjunction with a suspension band 28 carried on the lower (first) cage 10 as the two cages 10, 20 are brought axially together into their splicing relationship in the direction of arrow S.

The suspension band 28, of suitable strength steel, is welded to, and externally of, the rebars 12 of the lower (first) cage 10 adjacent its open upper end. It is this suspension band 28 in conjunction with the splicing devices 50A, 50B which serve to effect the splicing together of the two cages 10, 20 as they are brought axially together into their splicing relative relationship and the respective splicing devices 50A, 50B mounted on the lower end portion of the upper cage 10 are deployed, as described further below.

Any number of splicing devices 50A, 50B, from (especially) 2 up to e.g. 3, 4, 5 or 6 (or possibly more than 6), may be provided in the arrangement of FIG. 1 , and they are desirably equidistantly and equi-angularly spaced apart peripherally (or rather circumferentially, given the circular cross-sections of the cages 10, 20 in this particular illustrated embodiment) around the cage arrangement. By way of example, however, only two such splicing devices 50A, 50B are represented in FIG. 1 for clarity, but typically at least three such splicing devices may be used, e.g. spaced at 120° angles relative to each other around the periphery of the cage arrangement. In some cases more than three splicing devices may be utilised, if that is desired or necessary, for example depending on the overall dimensions and/or weight of the combined pile cages 10, 20 to be spliced together and subsequently lifted and/or lowered during their insertion in the prepared hole in the ground.

The lower (first) cage 10 is shown in FIG. 1 in a typical condition during a pile construction operation, in which the majority of the length of the lower cage 10 has already been lowered into a pile casing 5 located within a pre-drilled hole in the ground, leaving just an upper end section (C etc) of the lower cage 10 exposed and ready for splicing to the upper (second) cage 20, as shown. The lower cage 10 is suspended in the casing 5 by means of a steel trapping band 15 welded onto the cage rebars 12 (and which may lie externally or internally of those cage rebars 12) at the lower end of the exposed upper end section (C etc) of the lower cage 10. This trapping band 15 is used to temporarily trap beneath it, i.e. between it and the upper (open) end of the casing 5, an elongate trapping bar or rod 8, which thereby temporarily prevents the lower cage 10 from dropping down further into the casing 5 and thus effectively suspends it at a desired height location ready for splicing to the upper cage 20. Once the cages 10, 20 have been spliced together, they can then be lifted and/or lowered together down inside the casing 5 which lines the pile hole and wet concrete is then poured therein to form the pile. Prior to curing of the concrete, the casing 5 is removed for re-use in the forming of another pile.

The components and construction of one splicing device 50A that is used in the arrangement of FIG. 1 to splice together the lower and upper cages 10, 20 is shown in detail in FIGS. 2 and 3. According to the invention, and as reflected by this particular illustrated embodiment, this form of splicing device 50A is based primarily on a substantially co-planar or mono-planar spatial relationship between the engagement portion 60 of the splicing device 50A and a pivot plane P in which the pivotable gate member 50 moves as it pivots between its open and closed configurations either opening or closing access into or out of the transverse (or rather radial, given the circular cross-sections of the cages 10, 20 in this particular illustrated embodiment) suspension gap G formed between the detent portion 80 of the engagement portion 60 of the splicing device 50A and the rebar 22 of the upper cage 20 on which the splicing device 50A is mounted.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the principal components of the splicing device 50A are the pivotal gate member 50 and the engagement portion 60, which according to the invention are substantially co-planar with each other so as to minimise their collective or combined thickness dimension (i.e. perpendicular to the plane of the drawings, in a direction into and out of the paper) and thereby render their combination as slim as possible so that they have a minimised tendency to cause fouling thereagainst of portions of (e.g. protruding ribs 12R, 22R on the surfaces of, or even the free ends of) the rebars 12, 22 as the two cages 10, 20 are brought axially together into their spliced relationship.

The engagement portion 60, which may be cut from steel plate of a suitable grade, takes the form of a generally flat planar plate or web of the appropriate profile shape, and includes the detent portion 80 as an integral extension thereof toward its lower distal end (i.e. that end thereof remote from the engagement portion 60’s attachment to the upper cage 20 via one of its rebars 22). The detent portion 80 is thus spaced from the attachment rebar 22 of the upper cage 20 in a transverse direction T (see FIG. 2), i.e. transverse relative to the longitudinal axial direction A of the upper cage 20, so as to define the transverse suspension gap G between the detent portion 80 and the upper cage’s attachment rebar 22.

The gate member 50, which may be formed as a generally flat-faced or flattened body of a suitable grade of steel cut and/or machined to the appropriate shape, comprises an elongated main body portion 54 which is mounted at a proximal end thereof (indirectly) onto one of the rebars 22 of the upper cage 20 via a pivot bolt+nut mounting 90, which pivot bolt+nut mounting 90 allows the gate member 50 to pivot about that mounting 90 and relative to that rebar 22 of the upper cage 20 as the gate member 50 moves between its open and closed pivotal configurations. The pivot mounting 90 of the gate member 50 onto the rebar 22 of the upper cage 20 is actually indirectly via a flat planar base plate 120, e.g. cut or machined from a suitable grade of steel, which base plate 120 is welded to the rebar 22 of the upper cage 20 and has welded thereto (i.e. to its opposite face) the pivot bolt (or nut) that provides the site of pivotal attachment of the gate member 50 thereto via the pivot nut (or bolt) of the complete pivot mounting 90.

The main body portion 54 of the gate member 50 terminates at a distal end thereof (i.e. its end opposite its proximal end via which it is pivotally mounted to the rebar 22 of the upper cage 20) in a rounded, arcuately profiled or convex nose portion 56, which nose portion 56 abuttingly engages a lower distal detent portion 80 of the engagement portion 60 of the device 50A as the gate member 50 pivots into its closed configuration.

As shown in FIG. 2, the main body portion 54 of the gate member 50 includes a generally triangular-shaped extension portion 52 which comprises a substantially straight abutment or bearing edge or edge face 160 against which the suspension band 28 on the lower cage 10 abuts once the suspension band 28 has been inserted into the suspension gap G as the two cages 10, 20 are brought axially together along axial direction A into their spliced relationship. In this manner the abutment or bearing edge or edge face 160 bears the principal load exerted via the suspension band 28 by the weight of the cages 10, 20 once spliced together.

The main body portion 54 of the gate member 50 also includes (on the opposite side of the gate member 50 from the abutment or bearing edge or edge face 160) a substantially straight drive edge or edge face 170, which is angled as shown in FIG. 2 - i.e. angled obliquely at a non-right angle (e.g. an angle of from around 30 or 40 to around 50 or 60°) relative to the axial direction A of the upper cage 20 when the gate member 50 is in its closed configuration - and/or is chamfered or bevelled or convexly curved to facilitate the sliding abutment of the suspension band 28 thereagainst such that the suspension band 28 pushes the gate member 50 back and pivotally “out of the way” (i.e. in a pivoting direction from the gate member’s closed configuration towards its open configuration) as the suspension band 28 is inserted into the suspension gap G. In order to further assist and assure the smooth passage or receiving of the suspension band 28 into the suspension gap G as it pushes past the reverse-pivoting gate member 50, substantially without fouling against any adjacent parts of the device 50A, the lower terminal end edges 92 of the detent portion 80 may be chamfered or beveled, as depicted in FIG. 2.

Thus, the rounded, arcuately profiled or convex nose portion 56 of the gate member 50 is located between the abutment or bearing edge or edge face 160 and the drive edge or edge face 170, and on an opposite side of the gate member 50 from its pivot mounting 90 on or with respect to the upper cage 20. As mentioned above, the nose portion 56 of the gate member 50 abuttingly engages a lower distal detent portion 80 of the engagement portion 60 of the device 50A as the gate member 50 pivots into its closed configuration, which is its configuration as depicted in FIG. 2. The detent portion 80 comprises a generally V-shaped recess or indent 82, whose shape substantially matches the shape of the nose portion 56 of the gate member 50.

In order to optimise the slim thickness character of the collective or combined co-planar gate member 50 and engagement portion 60, so that they have a minimised tendency to cause fouling thereagainst of portions of the rebars 12, 22 as the two cages 10, 20 are brought axially together along axial direction A into their spliced relationship, the detent portion 80 is configured and/or dimensioned such that it is substantially wholly contained within a pair of boundary planes B (see FIG. 3) defined by the thickness of the engagement portion 60. Thus, and as shown in FIG. 3, the narrow and slim dimension of the collective or combined co-planar gate member 50 and engagement portion 60 components of the splicing device 50A enable the structural moving parts of the device 50A to be wholly contained well within a typical circumferential spacing 110 between neighbouring rebars 12 of the lower cage 10, even when such a cage 10 is of a relatively small size and the rebars 12 thereof are somewhat congested and space between them is somewhat limited.

In order to substantially prevent the nose portion 56 of the gate member 50 and the detent portion 80 of the engagement portion 60 slipping sideways off or apart from one another (i.e. into or out of the plane of the paper in the drawing of FIG. 2) once the gate member 50 has been pivoted into its closed configuration so that its nose portion 56 engagingly abuts the recess or indent 82, the device 50A is provided with a catch feature 58, 88 which enables the detent portion 80 and the nose portion 56 of the gate member 50 to inter-engage with each other such as to substantially prevent them moving or sliding apart or relative to each other in such a sideways direction. For example, the catch feature may take the form of an inter-engageable locator pin or bolt 88 fixedly mounted in and protruding from the bearing face 84B of the recess or indent 82 of the detent portion 80 which fits within a correspondingly shaped locator hole, recess or indent 58 formed in and extending into the opposed bearing face 84A of the nose portion 56 of the gate member 50.

As shown in FIG. 2, in order to bias the gate member 50 into its naturally closed pivotal configuration (as depicted in the arrangement shown in FIG. 2), it is provided with a coil spring 150 (or alternatively a leaf spring or any other suitable biasing member), anchored appropriately at each of its mounted ends. If desired or appropriate, the spring 150 may alternatively be incorporated into the gate member 50’s pivot mounting 90.

As shown more clearly in FIG. 3, according to the general principle underpinning this invention, the gate member 50 is pivotable about its pivot mounting 90 so as to define a pivot plane P - which is defined as a plane in space which is coincident (or coplanar) with or is parallel to a general plane defined by one or more of the flat faces or the flattened body of the gate member 50 itself - and the engagement portion 60 of the device 50A lies substantially in that pivot plane P. Thus, the engagement portion 60 may also be formed as a substantially flat planar steel plate, and its general plane lies substantially in the defined pivot plane P.

In the constructional version depicted in FIGS. 2 and 3, the co-planar or mono-planar relationship between the pivot plane P (defined by the pivoting movement of the gate member 50) and the engagement portion 60 is achieved by virtue of the engagement portion 60 being fixedly mounted on or with respect to the base plate 120 (on which the gate member 50 is pivotally mounted via the pivot mounting 90) via a bridging portion 70. For this purpose, the engagement portion 60 is integral with (or is formed as an integral extension of) the bridging portion 70, which bridging portion 70 thus forms a discrete structural component which is itself fixedly mounted via an attachment portion 72 thereof onto the upper end portion 120U of base plate 120, e.g. by fillet welds F (see FIG. 2).

As shown in the version depicted in FIG. 2, the upper end portion 120U of the base plate 120 (onto which the attachment portion 72 of the bridging portion 70 is attached (e.g. by fillet welds F)) is formed with a protruding nib portion 120N which extends a short distance (e.g. a few or several mm) away from the rebar 22 to which the base plate 120 is welded and generally towards the engagement portion 60. This protruding nib portion 120N thus provides a land of slightly or somewhat increased facial area for enhancing the degree of overlap and thus structural strength of the welded bond between the upper base plate end portion 120U and the attachment portion 72 welded thereto. However, as an alternative version to this arrangement - as depicted in the variant arrangement shown in FIG. 4 - the protruding nib portion 120N may be done away with and omitted, and instead the upper end portion 120U” of the base plate 120” is of substantially the same width as the remainder (i.e. the main body portion) of the base plate 120” but terminates simply in an upper edge 120E” that defines the limiting widthwise extent of the land that defines the degree of overlap of the welded bond between the straight upper base plate end portion 120U” and the attachment portion 72” welded thereto. In this alternative structural variant, the slightly reduced area of overlap of the welded bond between the straight upper base plate end portion 120U” and the attachment portion 72” may still be well sufficient for structural integrity purposes, but it also may make it easier and cheaper to form the whole base plate 120 from sheet steel, e.g. by cutting, since it is no longer necessary to form it with the integral protruding nib portion 120N thereon. Furthermore, the absence of the protruding nib portion 120N may be advantageous in itself, since it may further reduce the risk of fouling of a portion of the rebar 12 on the other cage against such a component that extends into the gap between the respective cage rebars of the two cages as the cages are brought axially together into their spliced arrangement.

However, in yet another alternative constructional variant to that of FIGS. 1 to 3 (not shown in the FIGS, for brevity/clarity), the co-planar or mono-planar relationship between the pivot plane P and the engagement portion 60 is achieved by virtue of the engagement portion 60 being fixedly mounted on or with respect to the same base plate 120 but via an alternative bridging portion which is not itself a discrete component that needs attaching by welding onto the upper end portion 120U of the base plate 120 but instead is an integral “bridging portion”-forming portion of a three-section unitary base plate component which comprises not only that “bridging portion’-forming portion (corresponding to 70) but also an “attachment portion” (corresponding to 72) via which it is fixedly mounted or attached, e.g. by fillet welds, to a rebar 22 of the upper cage 20, and further also comprises an “engagement portion”-forming portion (corresponding to 60) which constitutes the engagement portion 60. However, in this case, in order that the resulting planes of the engagement portion-forming portion of the three-section unitary base plate and the pivot plane P defined by the gate member 50 end up being substantially co-planar, the junction between the engagement portion-forming portion of the three-section unitary base plate and the bridging portion-forming portion thereof may comprise or include a bend, step or crank, e.g. formed by means of hot-forging (or other suitable technique).

In the foregoing detailed description of the more typical embodiment arrangements of FIGS. 1 to 3 and FIG. 4, it is the lower cage 10 which constitutes the “first” reinforcement cage defined hereinabove and which carries the suspension band 28, and the upper cage 20 which constitutes the “second” reinforcement cage defined hereinabove and which carries the one or more splicing devices 50A, 50B. However, it is within the scope of the present invention that in an alternative embodiment thereof it may be possible for the arrangement to be inverted or reversed (i.e. so as to be rendered “upside-down”), such that the “first” cage (carrying the suspension band 28) is the upper reinforcement cage of the pair to be spliced together end-to-end, and the “second” cage (carrying the one or more splicing devices 50A, 50B) is the lower reinforcement cage of the pair. To illustrate such an alternative embodiment, FIG. 5 shows this “upside-down” inverted arrangement, which corresponds in its fundamental construction, relative configuration of its component parts and its operation to the more typical embodiment arrangement of FIG. 1 . In this alternative, inverted, arrangement shown in FIG. 5, its various features and components that correspond structurally and/or functionally to those of the more typical arrangement of FIGS. 1 to 3 are labelled with the same reference numerals but with a “ ’ ” suffix.

In this inverted arrangement of FIG. 5, it is therefore the lower end portion C’ of the first but now upper cage 10’ that is “cranked”, i.e. tapered radially inwardly towards its open lower end, in order to form a spigot section C’ of that first (now upper) cage 10’ that is dimensioned so as to fit comfortably within the open upper mouth portion M’ of the second but now lower cage 20’. The various splicing devices 50A’, 50B’ are therefore now carried on and disposed around the periphery of the second (now lower) cage 20’ so as to effect their splicing operation in conjunction with the suspension band 28’ on the first (now upper) cage 10’ as the two cages 10’, 20’ are brought axially together into their splicing relationship in the direction of arrow S’.

In this inverted arrangement of FIG. 5, it is furthermore to be understood that the physical orientation of each of the splicing devices 50A’, 50B’, etc perse is likewise inverted through 180° (about an axis perpendicular to the longitudinal axial direction of the cages (represented by arrow S’)) from the orientation of the corresponding “other way up” splicing devices 50A, 50B, etc illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3. However, the fundamental construction, relative configuration of component parts and operation of those inverted splicing devices 50A’, 50B’, etc of FIG. 5 are substantially the same in all material respects as those of the “other way up” splicing devices 50A, 50B etc in the FIGS. 2 and 3 arrangement, as will be readily apparent to persons skilled in the art practising such an inverted embodiment arrangement as in FIG. 5.

It is to be understood that in the foregoing descriptions of various constructional arrangements and variations thereof of splicing devices according to embodiments of the invention that any and all individual features thereof may be taken independently or in any combination and applied in that manner to any and all embodiments, not only to those in the context of which such feature(s) have been specifically introduced, described or illustrated. In other words, any feature(s) described with reference to one embodiment is/are applicable to any and all embodiments, unless expressly stated otherwise or such features are incompatible.

It is furthermore to be understood that the above description of embodiments of the invention in terms of their various features and aspects has been by way of non-limiting example(s) only, and various modifications may be made from what has been specifically described and illustrated whilst remaining within the scope of the invention as claimed.

Claims

1. A device for splicing together end-to-end a first reinforcement cage and a second reinforcement cage, each of the first and second reinforcement cages extending in a longitudinal axial direction between respective opposite ends thereof, the first reinforcement cage comprising a suspension band adjacent one of its ends and the second reinforcement cage carrying the said device adjacent one of its ends, wherein the device comprises: an engagement portion fixedly mounted on or with respect to a portion of the second cage adjacent its one end and configured such that at least a detent portion thereof is spaced from the second cage in a transverse direction relative to the longitudinal axial direction of the second cage so as to define a transverse suspension gap between the said detent portion and the portion of the second cage on which the device is carried, the suspension gap being configured for receiving therein the suspension band on the first cage as the first and second cages are brought together into a splicing spatial relationship by relative axial movement thereof; and a gate member pivotally mounted on or with respect to the portion of the second cage adjacent its one end and selectively pivotally configurable in either an open configuration, in which the suspension band on the first cage can be inserted into or received in the suspension gap past the gate member during the axial relative movement of the first and second cages, or a closed configuration in which the suspension band on the first cage, once it has been located in the suspension gap, is prevented from being removed therefrom by the gate member; wherein the gate member is pivotable about its mounting on or with respect to the portion of the second cage in, or so as to define, a pivot plane, and the engagement portion of the device lies substantially in that pivot plane.

2. A splicing device according to claim 1 , wherein the pivotal mounting of the gate member on or with respect to the portion of the second cage is via a base plate, optionally a substantially planar base plate, fixedly mounted or attached to a rebar of the second cage.

3. A splicing device according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the gate member is formed as a generally flat-faced or flattened body, and the pivot plane is defined as a plane in space which is coincident or coplanar with or is parallel to a general plane defined by one or more of the flat faces or the flattened body of the gate member itself.

4. A splicing device according to any preceding claim, wherein at least a portion of, optionally at least a major or majority portion of, the engagement portion lies substantially in the said pivot plane defined by the pivoting motion of the gate member.

5. A splicing device according to any preceding claim, wherein at least a portion of, optionally at least a major or majority portion of, a thickness of the engagement portion lies approximately or substantially in or coincident with, or approximately or substantially coplanar with respect to, the said pivot plane.

6. A splicing device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the engagement portion of the device which is fixedly mounted on or with respect to the second cage is fixedly mounted on or with respect to a base plate, on which base plate the gate member is pivotally mounted, via a bridging portion.

7. A splicing device according to claim 6, wherein the engagement portion is integral with, or is formed as a unitary component with, or is formed as an extension of, a discrete said bridging portion, which discrete bridging portion is itself fixedly mounted on or attached to the base plate

8. A splicing device according to claim 6 or claim 7, wherein the engagement portion and the bridging portion are co-planar with each other, so that they both lie substantially in the same plane, whereby the resulting planes of the engagement portion and the pivot plane defined by the gate member are substantially co-planar.

9. A splicing device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the engagement portion of the device which is fixedly mounted on or with respect to the second cage is fixedly mounted on or with respect to a base plate, on which base plate the gate member is pivotally mounted, via a bridging portion which is not itself a discrete component that is mounted onto the base plate but instead the bridging portion is an integral bridging portionforming portion of a three-section unitary base plate component which comprises not only that bridging portion-forming portion but also an attachment portion via which it is fixedly mounted or attached to a rebar of the second cage, and further also comprises an engagement portion-forming portion which constitutes the said engagement portion.

10. A splicing device according to claim 9, wherein a junction between the engagement portion-forming portion of the three-section unitary base plate and the bridging portionforming portion thereof comprises or includes a bend, step or crank, whereby the resulting planes of the engagement portion-forming portion of the three-section unitary base plate and the pivot plane defined by the gate member are substantially co-planar.

11. A splicing device according to any preceding claim, wherein the engagement portion comprises a detent portion, which detent portion defines a part of the engagement portion with which the gate member engages or abuts once the gate member has been pivoted into its closed pivotal configuration.

12. A splicing device according to claim 11 , wherein the detent portion is, or is comprised within or at or adjacent, a distal end portion of the engagement portion, which distal end portion is an end portion of the engagement portion remote from an opposite end portion thereof via which the engagement portion is mounted on or with respect to the second cage.

13. A splicing device according to claim 11 or claim 12, wherein the detent portion comprises a recess or indent into which fits a correspondingly or matchingly shaped nose portion of the gate member as the latter pivots into its closed pivotal configuration.

14. A splicing device according to claim 13, wherein the detent portion, or at least its portion that comprises the recess or indent, is configured and/or dimensioned such that it is substantially wholly contained within a pair of boundary planes defined by the thickness of the engagement portion, whereby the detent portion, or at least its portion that comprises the recess or indent, substantially does not protrude or extend in a sideways direction to either side of the pair of boundary planes defined by the thickness of the engagement portion.

15. A splicing device according to any preceding claim, wherein at least one of the detent portion of the engagement portion and the nose portion of the gate member, or the detent portion and the nose portion of the gate member together, include catch means, for enabling the detent portion of the engagement portion and the nose portion of the gate member to inter-engage with each other such as to substantially prevent them moving or sliding apart or relative to each other in a sideways direction once the gate member has been pivoted into its closed configuration.

16. A splicing device according to claim 15, wherein the catch means takes the form of a locator pin or bolt fixedly mounted in and protruding from a bearing face of one of the detent portion and the nose portion of the gate member (optionally a bearing face of the detent portion) and a corresponding locator hole, recess or indent formed in and extending into a bearing face of the other of the detent portion and the nose portion of the gate member (optionally a bearing face of the nose portion of the gate member), into which locator hole, recess or indent the locator pin or bolt is insertable or locatable as the gate member is pivoted into its closed configuration.

17. A splicing device according to any preceding claim, wherein the device additionally includes a biasing means, optionally a spring, for biasing the gate member pivotally towards its closed pivotal configuration.

18. A splicing device according to any preceding claim, wherein the gate member includes an abutment or bearing edge or edge face against which the suspension band on the first cage can abut once the suspension band has been inserted into the suspension gap, as the first and second cages are brought axially together into their spliced relationship, and the gate member has pivoted into its closed configuration.

19. A splicing device according to claim 18, wherein the gate member further includes a drive edge or edge face, optionally a drive edge or edge face on a generally opposite side of the gate member from the said abutment or bearing edge or edge face thereof, the drive edge or edge face being configured for enabling the suspension band on the first cage to abuttingly slide against and past it and in so doing cause the gate member to pivot towards its open configuration as the suspension band is inserted into the suspension gap as the first and second cages are brought axially together.

20. A splicing device according to claim 19, wherein the drive edge or edge face is configured as a straight drive edge or edge face which is obliquely inclined relative to the axial direction of the second cage when the gate member is in its closed configuration and/or is chamfered or bevelled or convexly curved to facilitate the sliding abutment of the suspension band thereagainst as the suspension band is inserted into the suspension gap.

21. A splicing device according to claim 19 or clam 20, wherein the nose portion of the gate member is located between the abutment or bearing edge or edge face and the drive edge or edge face of the gate member, optionally therebetween and on an opposite side of the gate member from its pivot mounting on or with respect to the second cage.

22. A splicing device perse for splicing together end-to-end a first reinforcement cage and a second reinforcement cage, each of the first and second reinforcement cages extending in a longitudinal axial direction between respective opposite ends thereof, the first reinforcement cage comprising a suspension band adjacent one of its ends and the second reinforcement cage being for carrying the said device adjacent one of its ends, wherein the splicing device per se and/or the features thereof is/are as defined in any one of claims 1 to 21.

23. In combination, a second reinforcement cage and one or more, optionally a plurality of, splicing devices carried thereon adjacent one of its ends, the second reinforcement cage and the or each splicing device each respectively being as defined respectively in any one of claims 1 to 21.

24. In combination, a first reinforcement cage and a second reinforcement cage, the first and second reinforcement cages being spliced together end-to-end by use of one or more, optionally a plurality of, splicing devices each being as defined in any one of claims 1 to 21 .

25. The combination according to claim 24, wherein the suspension band carried on the first cage is mounted externally of the rebars of the first cage.

26. The combination according to claim 24 or claim 25, wherein an end or mouth portion of the first cage on or adjacent to which the suspension band is mounted is of a different, optionally a smaller, transverse width from the transverse width of the end portion of the second cage on or adjacent to which the or each splicing device is mounted, whereby the end or mouth portion of the first cage is cranked inwardly so that the suspension band mounted on the first cage more reliably lies within the said transverse suspension gap formed between the detent portion of the engagement portion of the or each splicing device and the portion of the second cage on which the or each splicing device is carried, as the cages are brought axially together into their spliced relationship.

27. A method of splicing together end-to-end a first reinforcement cage and a second reinforcement cage, each of the first and second reinforcement cages extending in a longitudinal axial direction between respective opposite ends thereof, the first reinforcement cage comprising a suspension band adjacent one of its ends and the second reinforcement cage carrying adjacent one of its ends one or more splicing devices as defined in any one of claims 1 to 21 , wherein the method comprises:

28. A pile or other reinforcing structure constructed using at least one plurality of reinforcement cages embedded therein, the cages of the plurality having been spliced together, prior to the pouring of concrete to form the pile or other reinforcing structure, by means of one or more, optionally a plurality of, splicing devices as defined in any one of claims 1 to 21.