GB2584451A

GB2584451A - A ballast distributor

Info

Publication number: GB2584451A
Application number: GB1907892.2A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Leaf Conrad
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2019-06-04
Filing date: 2019-06-04
Publication date: 2020-12-09
Anticipated expiration: 2039-06-04
Also published as: GB201907892D0; GB2584451B

Abstract

A ballast distributor 10 comprises a conical body 12 for covering a drain pedestal (14, Fig 2), and a lifting mechanism 16 for lifting the ballast distributor 10, where the lifting mechanism 16 is connected to the conical body 12 at an apex 18 of the conical body 12. The lifting mechanism 16 is releasably connected to the conical body 12. The ballast distributor 10 provides a safe solution to the problem of filling ballast (such as stone or concrete) around engineering components such as drain pedestals 14 and drainage rings without the need to have one or more additional workers in a vulnerable position on the component assisting in the filling process. Preferably, the lifting mechanism 16 is releasably connected to the conical body 12. The conical body 12 may comprise a plurality of flat sheets and a strengthening rib 20 connected to a base 22 of the conical body 12.

Description

DESCRIPTION

A BALLAST DISTRIBUTOR

This invention relates to a ballast distributor and to a method of using the ballast distributor.

On very large building projects such as new housing estates, the number of housing units being built will often run into the hundreds or even thousands. The provision of such a large number of housing units requires that very significant building and engineering work must take place in relation to such elements as water supply and waste water drainage. On such large estates drain pedestals are required that provide access to the drainage and waste water systems. A drain pedestal can be four metres across and is a very significant building project in its own right. Such a pedestal is often constructed from concrete which is separated from the existing ground by a metal shield that is spaced apart from the pedestal. Ballast is then provided that is filled between the pedestal and the shield. The provision of the ballast is carried out by a worker using the bucket of a digger to lift and drop ballast into the required space, with one or more additional workers standing on the pedestal guiding the unloading of the ballast. There are a number of problems with this process, firstly that the safety of the workers on the pedestal is compromised by the bucket of the digger and secondly the expense of using three people for the task is often much higher than it needs to be.

It is therefore an object of the invention to improve upon the known art.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a ballast distributor comprising a conical body for covering a drain pedestal, and a lifting mechanism for lifting the ballast distributor, the lifting mechanism connected to the conical body at an apex of the conical body.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of supplying ballast comprising lifting a ballast distributor according to the first aspect of the invention onto a drain pedestal, and dropping ballast onto the ballast distributor from above.

Owing to the invention, it is possible to provide a safer and more economical method of filling ballast, for example into the space between a drain pedestal and a metal shield that surrounds the drain pedestal. By using the ballast distributor, which has a conical body, there is no requirement that one or more workers be provided on top of the drain pedestal, as the ballast distributor can be sat on top of the pedestal and used as a means of directing the ballast being supplied, for example from the bucket of digger, into the to required location for the ballast. A single worker can operate the digger and perform the whole operation, from the lifting of the ballast distributor into position to the dropping of the ballast from above onto the ballast distributor. Preferably the lifting mechanism is releasably connected to the conical body. The two main parts of the ballast distributor are the conical body and the is lifting mechanism and preferably these two parts are releasably connected together, meaning that they can be readily separated. This allows multiple ballast distributors to be easily transported, since the conical bodies can be stacked on top of each, when the lifting mechanism has been removed from the top of each conical body. The also allows the ballast distributor to be supplied in multiple different sizes, but with fewer lifting mechanisms (which could in fact be one single lifting mechanism used for multiple different sizes of conical body).

Advantageously, the conical body comprises a plurality of flat sheets and in the most preferred embodiment, the conical body comprises eight flat sheets. The conical body can be formed using flat sheets that are seam welded together. This is the simplest and cheapest structure to manufacture while also providing a suitable surface on which the ballast can land when dropped from above. The ballast will slide down the surface of the conical body and be evenly distributed in the desired location, such as a channel between a drain pedestal and a surrounding metal shield. The body of the ballast distributor is conical in the sense that the body is shaped so that the body tapers from a base to an apex, which is not necessarily a point, with the base being larger than the apex. The base can be a regular shape such as an octagon, in the case of a conical body comprised of eight flat sheets.

Ideally the ballast distributor further comprises a strengthening rib connected to a base of the conical body, where preferably the strengthening rib connected to the base of the conical body runs along the entire base of the conical body. The provision of a strengthening rib around all or part of the base of the conical body improves the durability of the ballast distributor. The rib will help to maintain the shape of the conical body and will also help to prevent damage to the ballast distributor, particularly when the ballast distributor is io being lowered into position on top of a drain pedestal, for example. Any heavy contact to the bottom of the ballast distributor could cause damage to the conical body and the provision of the strengthening rib will help to prevent damage to the ballast distributor.

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:-Figure 1 is a side view of a ballast distributor, Figure 2 is a side view of a drain pedestal, Figure 3 is a view similar to Figure 2 showing the ballast distributor of Figure 1 located on the drain pedestal of Figure 2, Figure 4 is a view similar to Figure 3 showing ballast being dropped onto the ballast distributor, Figure 5 is a perspective view of the top of the ballast distributor, and Figure 6 is top plan view of the ballast distributor.

Figure 1 shows a ballast distributor 10 comprising a conical body 12 which is suitable for covering a drain pedestal, and a lifting mechanism 16 for lifting the ballast distributor 10, where the lifting mechanism 16 connected to the conical body 12 at an apex 18 of the conical body 12. The lifting mechanism 16 is releasably connected to the conical body 12. The conical body 12 comprises a plurality of flat sheets and here the conical body 12 comprises eight flat sheets. The sides of the conical body 12 are seam welded metal sheets that form a regular octagon at their base and taper upwards to the apex 18.

The ballast distributor 10 further comprising a strengthening rib 20 connected to a base 22 of the conical body 12 and the strengthening rib 20 connected to the base 22 of the conical body 12 runs along the entire base 22 of the conical body 12. The rib 20 is there to provide strength and rigidity to the conical body 12 of the ballast distributor 10. The rib 20 protects the ballast distributor 10 from damage through accidental collisions and the like. The rib 20 helps to maintain the shape of the conical body 12, which is hollow, with the io rib running around the base of the conical body 12.

The lifting mechanism 16 comprises an apex component 24 directly connected to the apex 18 of the conical body 12 and a hook component 26 directly connected to apex component 24. The lifting mechanism 16 is designed so that the ballast distributor 10 can be lifted from above and can be is easily moved from one location to another. The ballast distributor 10 can be loaded onto a flatbed truck via the lifting mechanism 16 for movement from one location to another and then in similar fashion lifted into position for use as a ballast distributor using the lifting mechanism 16, lifting the ballast distributor 10 from above and then lowering the ballast distributor 10 into position.

Figure 2 shows a drain pedestal 14, which has a metal screen (or sleeve) 30 separating the drain pedestal 14 from the ground 32. Ballast 28 (such as loose rock or concrete) is used to fill the gap between the screen 30 and the ground 32. The pedestal is formed from concrete and forms part of a waste water drainage system that is installed in large building and engineering works, such as during the building of a new housing estate. The pedestal 14 may be provided with an entry hatch on top, which allows entry into the drainage system of which the pedestal 14 forms part. The construction of the pedestal 14 is a significant engineering task.

The ballast distributor 10 is designed to assist in the construction of the drain pedestal 14, particularly in relation to the provision of the ballast 28 into the gap between the pedestal 14 and the screen 30. The ballast distributor 10 can be lifted onto the top of the pedestal 14 and used as a means of distributing the ballast 28 into the gap between the pedestal 14 and the screen 30. The ballast distributor 10 is sized to match the size of the pedestal 14. Multiple different sizes of ballast distributor 10 can be provided, with the correct size being chosen on site to match the size of the pedestal 14.

Figure 3 shows the pedestal 14 of Figure 2 with the ballast distributor 10 of Figure 1 having been lifted into position on top of the pedestal 14. The ballast distributor 10 is centrally located on the pedestal 14 and has been lifted into position, for example using a suitable hook on a construction digger or similar vehicle. The use of a ballast distributor 10 means that there do not need to be additional workers present on top of the pedestal 14 to guide the dropping of the ballast 28 into the right place (filling the gap between the pedestal 14 and the screen 30). The ballast distributor 10 is therefore a safer method of delivering the ballast 28.

Once the ballast distributor 10 is lifted into position on top of the is pedestal 14, then the ballast 28 can be dropped onto the ballast distributor 10 from above. The tapered shape of the conical body 12 supports the distribution of the ballast 28 from a digger bucket above the ballast distributor 10 and down along the sides of the conical body 12 and into the gap between the pedestal 14 and the screen 30. The robust structure of the ballast distributor 10 prevents damage to the ballast distributor 10 as the ballast 28 is being dropped onto the ballast distributor 10 from above. The ballast 28 slides off the sides of the conical body 12 and into the gap between the pedestal 14 and the screen 30.

Figure 4 shows the ballast 28 being dropped from above onto the ballast distributor 10. The ballast can be lifted by the bucket of a suitable digger and is then dropped onto the ballast distributor 10 from above. As can be seen in the Figure, the shape of the conical body 12, which tapers from its base 22 to its apex 18, guides the ballast 28 into the gap between the pedestal 14 and the screen 30. The process continues until sufficient ballast 28 has been delivered to fill the gap between the pedestal 14 and the screen 30, at which point the ballast distributor 10 is free to be moved to another location or back to a flatbed truck that was used to deliver the ballast distributor 10.

The lifting mechanism 16 of the ballast distributor 10 is used to move the ballast distributor 10 into position and is also used to lift away the ballast distributor 10 once the delivery of the ballast 28 has been completed. In the preferred embodiment of the ballast distributor 10, the lifting mechanism 16, which is connected to the apex of the conical body 12, is releasably connected to the conical body 12, meaning that it can be readily removed from the conical body 12. This allows a specific lifting mechanism 16 to be selected that is most suitable for the particular component that is lifting the ballast distributor 10 and allows the ballast distributor 10 to be transported without the lifting mechanism io being in place.

Figure 5 shows a close up perspective view of the top of the ballast distributor 10. The lifting mechanism 16 comprises an apex component 24 directly connected to the apex 18 of the conical body 12 and a hook component 26 directly connected to apex component 24. In the preferred is embodiment of the ballast distributor 10, the conical body 12 is provided with a vertical screw (a 10mm bolt) at its apex which mates with a corresponding thread provided inside the lifting mechanism 16. This allows the lifting mechanism 16 to be screwed onto the conical body 12 by hand and also allows the reverse process of removing the lifting mechanism 16 from the conical body 12 to be carried out by hand.

The apex component 24 can be covered with a high-visibility material, preferably a plastics material in a bright colour such as fluorescent yellow. This helps those working with the ballast distributor 10 to see more easily the lifting mechanism 16, for example when a worker is trying to lift the ballast distributor 10 from the back of a flatbed truck or to lift the ballast distributor 10 off of the drain pedestal 14 once the ballast 28 has been dropped onto the ballast distributor 10. As can be appreciate, the dropping of the ballast onto the ballast distributor 10 can obscure the lifting mechanism 16 and the provision of the high-visibility material on the lifting mechanism 16 helps the worker to see the lifting mechanism 16.

Figure 6 shows a top plan view of the ballast distributor 10. As can be seen, the ballast distributor 10 comprises the conical body 12 for covering the drain pedestal, and the lifting mechanism 16 for lifting the ballast distributor 10, with the lifting mechanism 16 connected to the conical body 12 at the apex 18 of the conical body 12. The conical body 12 of the ballast distributor 10 is formed from eight regular flat metal sheets that are connected together at their sides (seam welded) and form a regular eight sided shape (an octagon) at the base of the conical body 12. The circle defining the width of the octagon is 1.2m in diameter. The conical body 12 tapers from the base to the apex 18.

Other shapes and sizes of the ballast distributor 10 can be provided for use in the distribution of ballast 28, depending upon the needs of the job in hand. As detailed above, since different sizes of drain pedestals 14 are constructed on different sites and indeed on the same site, there is an advantage in having different sizes of ballast distributor 10. The correct size of ballast distributor 10 can then be selected for the size of the drain pedestal that is to be filled against. The ballast distributor 10 can also be used in other is jobs where ballast needs to be located into a defined area where normally a worker would be present, adjacent to the delivery of the ballast 28.

The ballast distributor 10 provides a safe solution to the problem of filling ballast (such as stone or concrete) around engineering components such as drain pedestals 14 and drainage rings without the need to have one or more additional workers in a vulnerable position on the component assisting in the filling process. This removes the high risk of injury to the worker(s) on the component and also reduces the cost of the process. The ballast distributor 10 saves time and money and results in a safer filling process.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A ballast distributor (10) comprising: * a conical body (12) for covering a drain pedestal (14), and * a lifting mechanism (16) for lifting the ballast distributor (10), the lifting mechanism (16) connected to the conical body (12) at an apex (18) of the conical body (12).
2. A ballast distributor according to claim 1, wherein the lifting mechanism (16) is releasably connected to the conical body (12).
3. A ballast distributor according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the conical body (12) comprises a plurality of flat sheets.
4. A ballast distributor according to claim 3, wherein the conical body (12) comprises eight flat sheets.
5. A ballast distributor according to claim 1 or 2, and further comprising a strengthening rib (20) connected to a base (22) of the conical body (12).
6. A ballast distributor according to claim 5, wherein the strengthening rib (20) connected to the base (22) of the conical body (12) runs along the entire base (22) of the conical body (12).
7. A ballast distributor according to any preceding claim, wherein the lifting mechanism (16) comprises an apex component (24) directly connected to the apex (18) of the conical body (12) and a hook component (26) directly connected to apex component (24).
8. A method of supplying ballast (28) comprising: * lifting a ballast distributor (10) according to any one of claims 1 to 7 onto a drain pedestal (14), and * dropping ballast (28) onto the ballast distributor (10) from above.