GB2159551A - Vertical structures - Google Patents

Abstract

Procedure for the realization of vertical constructions, characterized in that it consists in manufacturing in advance standardized modular elements that are then assembled on site, each element being composed of a sheet metal panel 5 with a smooth outer side to which are welded rigidification and reinforcing ribs 6. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Procedure for the realization of vertical constructions The present invention concerns vertical constructions, specially of increased heights and preferably but not exclusively, silos for stocking and loading cereals, or other bulk products, such as starch, talc, lime and such.

Until now, these constructions were realized on site, either in concrete or in corregated panels. A consrete silo is costly with a long construction time. A welded and corregated sheet silo also is, and moreover it has a surplus of inconveniences, naturally due to the foam of the constutuent elements: the inner wall has hollows and ridges, and the presence of these hollows creates differential rough zones, with on one hand the formation of organic matter deposits that tend to decay in place, and on the other hand, the formation of deposits determining large dynamic stress.

The invention brings a solution to all of these inconveniences, thanks to a simple process and material, that are inexpensive and easy to implement.

According to the invention, the construction is realized with standard modular elements, manufactured in advance, and assembled on site simply by bolting and by welding to uprights, these elements being flat panels, smooth on the inner side, and to the outer side are welded horizontal ribs for reinforcement and rigidification, forming with the flat panels closed containers.

According to an interesting variation of this realization, the ribs themselves are complimented by angle irons or by formed beams of various sections, distributed edgewise on the outer side of the panel, covered by the rib and along all or a part of its length, i.e. inside the container, their number and their frequency being determined by the restraints exerted on the panel.

Constructions of all forms and of all sizes are obtained from small, easy to realize and to transport elements, smooth inside, whose solidity and rigidity are guanranteed by the ribs.

According to the invention, the rib size, and notably their thickness, are proportional to the size of each panel; the layout is progressive in a vertical diection, with respect to the height of the construction, conforming to the usual forces, themselves depending on the height of the construction and the amount of matter it contains.

The implementation of this procedure may enable several variations in the realization of the basic modulated elements.

Therefore, even if, fundamentally, the ribs are of a trapezoidal section, one must consider that, according to the nature and the sizes of the considered constructions, it is desirable to adapt this section, for economical considerations, as well as for mechanical constraints.

Therefore, in the case of thin walls, much higher ribs can be assembled, equivalent to several standard ribs brought close together or attached to form a single one, thus saving the metal and the welding lines corresponding to the assembly zone, which is then reduced to a single longitudinal imprint.

Likewise, to realize the curved pyramidal base of a polygonal construction, ribs with a triangular section will be used, with a horizontal side and a vertical one, resulting in exerting only vertical stresses on the supporting foundation of the construction, which are easy to absorb.

The reinforcing pieces installed inside the ribs may also have special shapes, with respect to the rib sizes.

Therefore, in the most frequent case, such a reinforcing piece will have a U-shape, and be placed edgewise on the smooth sheet with its sides parallel to the length of the rib. However, in the case of a long rib corresponding to the linking of two or more standard trapezoidal ribs, the reinforcing U-shape piece will be reinforced by a side folding back towards the base of the U, assuring a better fitting of the piece to the wall's smooth sheet, which assures better protection against distortions, even though this reinforcing piece is made of very thin sheet metal.

According to a simplified variation, the part of the smooth sheet located under a rib in a zone that may undergo local distortions, will be strengthened by a series of single vertical angle irons welded at appropriate intervals to the sheet metal.

Moreover, the uprights that vertically delimit the elements and generally have a rectangular section, may also allow several variations, notably in the case of polygonal constructions.

Therefore, entirely parallelepipedic reinforcing ribs may be used, without having to indent their ends at an angle a equal to half of the angle at the top of the polygone, if, instead of rectangular right angle section uprights, trapezoidal right angle section uprights are used, the smaller bases being towards the inside of the construction and the non-parallel sides being inclined with respect to the same angle a.

In the same case, and in the hypothesis that, for stocking particulrly corrosive materials, the smooth sheet metal of the element is realozed in non-oxidizing material, on the interior of the construction, normally it is necessary for this smooth sheet to be continuous and attached to the place where the two consecutive elements are attached.

These different variations, as well as others, are illustrated in the annexed drawings in which: -Figures 1 and la are perspective and partly cutaway views of a silo wall, made of corregated sheets, according to the previous technique, -Figures 2 and 2a are similar perspective and cutaway views of a modular element according to the invention, -Figures 3 and 3a are similar to Figs. 2 and 2a, but they have supplementary reinforcing pieces on the ribs, according to the invention.

-Figures 4, 4a and 4b illustrate the construction of a flat wall and of its support on the base, from a front and in a horizontal view.

--Figure 5 illustrates the constitution of an angle in a polygonal construction, -Figure 6 is a partial view of a construction in the process of being realized by means of these elements.

-Figure 7 represents, in perspective, a rigidification rib of great height for thin walls.

-Figure 8 represents, in perspective, a reinforcing piece that can be used notably with a rib of the kind represented in Fig. 7.

-Figure 9 represents, in perspective, another variation of the means of reinforcing the smooth sheet under a rib, -Figure 10 represents an axial cut, a curved pyramidal base for a polygonal construction according to the invention, -Figure 11 illustrates the replacement of the uprights by iron bars in the polygonal construction, whose inner surface is non-oxidable.

-Figure 12 is a view similar to Fig. 5, but the uprights-have a trapezoidal section.

Referring first of all to Figs. 1 and 1a, one sees that the wall of a silo built according to the previous techniques, is composed of a single sheet metal 1, bent alternately towards the inside and towards the outside, so as to form ribs, alternately in hollow 2 and in ridge 3. Such bent sheets are generally fixed at points on the uprights as represented, for example in the French patent 79 00 1 59 of January 4, 1 979.

Even though this construction, and this bending into ribs, assure a certain rigidity to the construction, it is inconvenient to leave zones such as zone 4, in which the material stocked in the silo can accumulate, without flowing when the silo is emptied. This material is generally organic in origin, and it may decay in place and contaminate the following filling of the silo. Moreover, the outflow of the vaults that are vaults that are formed when the silo is emptied, create large dynamic stress on the walls.

Furthermore, the uprights to which these sheets are attached, and the sheets themselves, are generally very large-sized, constructed on the site itself, and mounted on site with considerable expense and efforts.

By referring to Figs. 2 and 2a, we see that a similar and much improved result is obtained thanks to the invention, according to which, the silo is made of a flat sheet metal 5, to the external side of which horizontal ribs are attached, for example by welding such as at 6, forming a succession of closed horizontal containers.

The following double result is obtained: -firstly, the inner surface of the wall is completely smooth, secondly, this wall is made rigid by ribs that may be of a thickness and a spacing corresponding to the mechanical restraints of a wall of this type of construction.

Such elements may be realized in various sizes, by continuous or automatic welding in the factory, then assembled on site in the form of modular elements adapted to the type of construction.

In the variation of the invention shown in Figs. 3 and 3a, supplementary pieces 10 are inserted between the panel 5 and each rib 6.

Referring to the partial cutaway made in Fig.

3, one sees that piece 10 has a U-shape and is placed edgewise on panel 5 behind the rib in case of excessive loads. Their number and their layout is therefore a function of the size of the silo and the location of the panel under consideration. In case of a complex, co,struction, the number and the mayout could be determined by a computer program, which will allow the construction, from a group of identical elements, of a whole series of silos.

Of course, pieces 10 could have a different section, for example a V or a Z, or any other form. Their essential roie is to form a series of supplementary reinforcing partitions the length of the ribs.

Figs. 4 and 5 illustrate various modes of assembling modular elements as shown in Figs. 2-2a or 3-3a, i.e. each composed of a panel 11 to which are welded horizontal ribs 12, to form rigidification containers reinforced or not by pieces such as 10 (Figs. 3-3a).

Thes modular elements are bordered by uprights 13, allowing two different types of assembly: For the formation of large-sized flat panels (Figs. 4, 4a and 4b), several panels 11, 12, 1 3 are juxtaposed to form simple sub-assemblies such as S and S2, and these sub-assemblies are juxtaposed along the two uprights 1 3'a and 1 3'b to form a complete flat wall.

This wall is installed at the location of the pair of uprights 1 3'a and 1 3'b, with anchoring and consolidating bases, which assure a sufficient foundation to this wall. To this effect, the uprights 1 3'a and 1 3'b are shortened, to allow the inserting of footings 1 4a and 14b, with a vertical trapezoidal section, and whose large bases are fixed to a very heavy common foundation 1 5. This structure is particularly adapted to a rectangular base and very largesized construction such as a grain silo.

For the construction of smaller sized structures with polygonal sections, the operation is the one illustrated in Fig. 5. In this case, each panel has a single complete module 11-12-13, and at the angles of the structure, the rib is indented as indicated by the broken line 11' according to an angle CL to allow the assembly of an inclines upright 1 3"a to be coupled to another upright 1 3"b which has the same tilt, and to the following panel. Therefore the two uprights 1 3"a and 1 3"b are enclosed, which assures their mutual assistance, and thus continuous working conditions.

According to a variation of the assembly of the two adjacent 13, bolting may be used instead of welding to assure the enasing, and this eliminates all welding under the site, but since it involves a seal, it is not advantageous to the solidity of the assembled elements, which are no longer mutually assisting. To compensate for an eventual distortion, under the effect of the filling pressure, each bolt may be strengthened by a sheath of tubes.

Fig. 6 illustrates this assembly, the modular elements such as A and B are assembled to parts such as C, being understood that, even if it is not represented on the drawing, for more clarity, the thickness e of each rib and the space E between two successive ribs vary according to the size of the elements used, and according to the height at which this element is installed, the calculation of these different dimensions being made according to usual construction techniques.

To illustrate the preceding, reference is made to Fig. 7 which is similar to Fig. 2, but in which, the wall 105 being thin, two ribs are molded together, 106, thus resulting in the union of two ribs as in 6, assembled along an imprint 107. The material of the two edges 108 as well as the two weldings on sheet 105 are therefore economized. Moreover it is therefore assured that the whole metal section works. In this way, the resistance of the wall is further improved.

In the same way, if reference is made to Fig. 8, the same rib 106 is represented, but it is completed by a reinforcing piece 109, similar to piece 10 in Fig. 3, but with a improved design: the piece still has a Ushaped general section, the base 110 of the U being indented at 111 to allow the passage of the ridge 107, and this base is moreover bent backwards at 112, which assures a better joining of the piece to sheet 105, and eventually allows the shortening of sides 11 3 of the U.

According to the other variation in Fig. 9, on the smooth sheet 200, a rib according to the invention, 201, whose front portion 202 is removed so as to see the ways of strengthening the sheet, and here they consist of vertical angle irons 203, welded to the sheet 200 by one of their sides. The edges of the other side are naturally cut out at 204 so that it adapts to the tilt of the lateral sides of the rib, even though they are not necessarily in contact.

These irons 203 allow for compensation of the local efforts which tend to distort the smooth sheet 200. Their frequency and even their presence is therefore a function of these efforts and their repartition.

In Fig. 10, a polygonal construction 114 is represented, formed by vertical panels according to the invention, ending in a curved pyramidal shaped hoppes 115, i.e. resulting from the union of isoceles triangles along their equal sides by curving towards the common top 11 6. Each horizontal section of this hopper will therefore be a homothetic polygone of the basic polygone of the construction 1 14, and the rectilinear reinforcing ribs 11 7 will be distributed around a certain number of these sections. According to the invention, these ribs will have a triangular section, one of their sides will be vertical and the other horizontal, as illustrated.A hopper 11 5 with no horizontal stresses can therefore be calculated: the continuity of the curve only puts vertical efforts on the bases 118 of the panels, which are easily absorbed. The solidity of the construction is therefore improved.

Finally, referring to Figs. 11 and 12, one sees that in certain cases, the form of the uprights 1 3 can be modified. Therefore, as well as in Fig. 11, the uprights 1 3 are replaced by iron bars 119, which allow an easier connection of the sheets 120, if it is necessary to fold back the latter as shown in 1 21 to assure the continuity of the wall; for example, when the construction is destined to receive corrosive materials such as suifur, salt, or analog materials. In this case, a shim 1 22 is necessary to take-up play that is equal to two times the thickness of a sheet metal between the two iron bars 11 9, and the welding is made above this shim at the point where the two bends 121 meet.Fabrication is simplified, and less expensive, event though this variation is preferably used for polygonal constructions.

In Fig. 12, similar to Fig. 5, it is shown how, with trapezoidal section uprights 113", using specific tools, it is possible to use standard rectangular ribs 11 2 to make polygonal structures, instead of having to indent the ribs at an angle a corresponding to each polygone for the rectangular section uprights, as shown by the broken line 11' in Fig. 5.

This results in an important economy of labor and material.

It therefore appears that the different standard elements that can be used according to the invention may be made according to specific appropriate variations, according to the usage of the diverse constructions, however, the number of these variations remains very limited compared to the number of applications of construction. The importance of this new type of construction in comparison to the classical metallic silos, is in the rapidity in which it is realized, the absence of build-up on the inner wall, the reduction of the dynamic stresses during emptying, a better "energetic output", i.e. an increase of the internal acceptable pressure for a given amount of stocked materials, and most of all the possibility of automating standard modules in the factory that only need to be assembled on site with a minimum of material and personnel.

Elsewhere, the importance of this type of construction compared to the concrete that is sometimes used, is that it is always less expensive, and especially its construction is more rapid than a concrete construction, which is focibly very long, and has to be done on site, while in the case of the present invention, the product of entirely manufactured in factory, in the form of modular elements that are easily assembled on site by an appropriate bolting or welding system.

Likewise, compared to traditional constructions, the advantage of the invention is a great flexibility, whatever the size of the construction, and moreover, it can be considered that, the larger the size of the construction, the more important this system is, since the constructions such as traditional silos have very large-sized elements, which poses transportation problems, as well as problems such as bad weather and personnel necessary for finishing the project.

These problems are eliminated with this invention, which considers only a group of elements easy to manufacture in a plant, and to transport and assemble on site.

It must be understood that, even if it is particularly adapted to the construction of silos, the invention is not limited to this application and to the contrary allows the realization of all constructions, that are used for stocking, loading and unloading any bulk matter.

Claims (16)

1. Procedure for the realization of vertical constructions, chracterized in that it consists in manufacturing in advance standardized modular elements, that are then assembled on site, each element being composed of a smooth sheet metal to the outer side of which reinforcing and rigidification ribs are welded.

2. Procedure according to claim 1, characterized in that the thickness of each rib is proportional to the dimensions of the panel.

3. Procedure according to claims 1 and 2, characterized in that the spacing between two successive ribs varies in function to the height at which the panel is assembled.

4. Procedure according to claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the ribs are horizontal.

5. Procedure according to claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the panels are assembled to vertical rectangular section uprights.

6. Procedure according to claims 1 to 5, characterized in that supplementary reinforcing pieces are inserted along the ribs between the panel and the top of the rib.

7. Procedure according to claim 6, characterized in that the pieces are U-shaped and laid edgewise against the panel.

8. Construction elements and constructions such as silos, obtained by the procedure according to any one of the claims 1 to 7.

9. Construction elements and constructions such as silos characterized in that at the base of a couple of uprights vertical trapezoidal section footers are inserted and attached to an anchoring base on the foundation.

10. Constructions according to claim 8, characterized in that two adjacent panels are assembled by bolts to their successive uprights with a seal interposed.

11. Constructions according to claim 8, characterized in that two adjacent panels are assembled by welding to their respective uprights.

12. Construction elements according to claim 8, characterized in that, in order to make a thin wall rigid, a longer rib is used, which results in the uniting of several ribs along the longitudinal imprint, therefore eliminating the common sides and their welding lines on the smooth sheet metal.

1 3. Elements according to claim 12, characterized in that the reinforcing piece has a side bent towards the back of the base of the U, whose opposite edge has a notch that receives the imprint of the rigidification rib.

14. Elements according to claim 8, characterized in that, each elements having the form of an isoceles triangle, that is curved parallel to its base, the rigidification ribs are also districuted parallel to the base and to the triangular section, with one side horizontal and the other vertical.

1 5. Elements according to claim 12, characterized in that the reinforcing piece is at least an angle iron vertically welded along one of its edges to the smooth sheet metal along the rib.

16. Elements according to claim 15, characterized in that the angle irons are distributed in function to the stress supported locally by the concerned sheet metal zone.

1 7. Elements according to any one of the claims from 8 to 16, characterized in that in the case of a polygonal construction, uprights are constituted by iron bars around whose outer edge are bent the vertical edge of each sheet, the play subsisting between the two iron bars at an angle being filled by a shim.

1 8. Elements according to any one of the claims from 8 to 16, characterized in that in the case of a polygonal construction, the uprights have a trapezoidal section, allowing the use of standard rectangular ribs.