IE64059B1 - A flood barrier - Google Patents

Abstract

A flood barrier for mounting at a doorway opening comprises a panel slidably engageable with receiver brackets (6, 7) mounted at opposite sides (3) of the doorway opening (2). A tube housed within a channel extending around side and bottom edges of the panel 5 is inflatable to urge a sealing strip mounted across a mouth of the channel into sealing engagement with the receiver brackets (6, 7) and a threshold (4) of the doorway opening (2) for flood protection.

Description

This invention relates to a demountable flood barrier for mounting at an opening such as a doorway to prevent passage of liquid through the opening during flooding.

Floods due to bad weather conditions often cause considerable damage to buildings. To prevent entry of flood water into buildings, through doorways for example, temporary barriers made with sand bags or the like are sometimes used. These take a considerable amount of time and work to construct.

Also as the sand bag barriers are relatively bulky access into the building through the doorway is severely restricted.

The present invention is directed towards overcoming this problem.

Statements of Invention According to the invention there is provided a demountable flood barrier for mounting at an opening to prevent passage of liquid through the opening, comprising a liquid resistant panel for mounting across at least a lower portion of the opening, mounting means for supporting the panel at the opening, and sealing means for engagement between the panel and a periphery of the opening, the sealing means being a flexible sealing strip and an associated inflatable tube mounted behind the sealing strip, the tube being inflatable to urge the sealing strip into sealing engagement between the panel and the periphery of the opening. Ideally, the sealing strip has an outer sealing surface with a number of spacedapart ribs.

In another embodiment the sealing means is mounted on the panel. Preferably, the sealing means extends along at least portion of an outer edge of the panel. Ideally, the tube is located in an associated channel provided along the outer edge of the panel.

In a further embodiment the mounting means comprises a pair of receiver brackets for mounting at opposite sides of the opening, the panel being releasably engageable with the receiver brackets. Preferably, the panel is slidably engageable with the receiver brackets.

In another embodiment, the receiver brackets are of channel section. In a particularly preferred embodiment, the flood barrier is for mounting in an opening having a flat base with upstanding sides, the receiver brackets being for attachment to the sides in an upright position, with channels on the brackets for reception of the panel facing each other, lower ends of each channel being curved outwardly to provide rounded corners between the sides and base of the opening.

In another embodiment, the mounting means is a U-shaped bracket of channel section for mounting at a lower end of the opening engaging sides and a base of the opening, with an inwardly facing channel of the bracket for reception of the panel.

In a further embodiment locking means is provided to releasably secure the panel on the mounting means.

In another embodiment the locking means comprises locking pins engageable with associated through holes at an upper end of each receiver bracket to retain the panel in engagement with the receiver brackets beneath the pins.

In a particularly preferred embodiment, the locking means comprise sliding bolts on the panel engageable with complementary slots on the receiver brackets. Means may be provided to lock the bolts in an engaged position.

In a particularly preferred embodiment the panel comprises a rigid plastics sheet mounted in a rectangular aluminum support frame having an inner channel for reception of the plastics sheet and an outer channel extending around the sides and bottom of the frame for reception of the tube which is mounted behind the sealing strip which extends across a mouth of the channel.

Preferably, a pressure release valve is provided on the tube.

Detailed Description of the Invention 5 The invention will be more clearly understood by the following description of some embodiments thereof, given by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which; Fig. 1 is a perspective exploded view of a flood barrier 10 according to the invention, Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line II-II of Fig. 1, Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line III-III of Fig. 1, Fig. 4 is a perspective view of an angle cleat forming portion of the flood barrier, Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a shoe gasket forming portion of the flood barrier, Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken along the line VI-VI of Fig. 1, Fig. 7 is a rear elevational, partially cut-away view of another flood barrier mounted in a doorway, Fig. 8 is a sectional view taken along the line VIII-VIII of Fig. 7, Fig. 9 is a detail elevational view of portion of the flood barrier of Fig. 7, Fig. 10 is a sectional view taken along the line X-X of Fig· 9, Fig. 11 is a detail elevational view of portion of the flood barrier, Fig. 12 is a plan view of the flood barrier portion shown in Fig. 11, Fig. 13 is an elevational view of a bolt forming portion of a lock on the flood barrier, Fig. 14 is an end view of the bolt of Fig. 13, Fig. 15 is an elevational view of portion of the lock, Fig. 16 is an end view of the lock portion shown in Fig. 15, Fig. 17 is an elevational view of an inflatable tube forming portion of the flood barrier, Fig. 18 is a sectional elevational view of an air inlet adaptor for the tube, Fig. 19 is an end view of the air inlet adaptor, Fig. 20 is a side elevational view of portion of the flood barrier, Fig. 21 is a front elevational view of the portion shown in Fig. 20, and Fig. 22 is a plan view of the portion shown in Fig. 20.

Referring to the drawings and initially to Figs. 1 to 6 thereof, there is illustrated a demountable flood barrier according to the invention indicated generally by the reference numeral 1 for mounting at a doorway opening 2 having sides 3 and a threshold 4. The flood barrier 1 comprises a rigid panel 5 which is slidably engageable with a pair of receiver brackets 6, 7 which are rigidly fixed to opposite sides 3 of the doorway opening 2.

The panel 5 comprises a rigid plastics sheet 10 mounted in a rectangular support frame 11 having bottom 12, a top 13 and sides 14, 15 all of which are formed by aluminium extrusions of similar cross section welded together to form the frame 11.

As can be seen in Figs. 2 and 3 an inner channel 18 in the frame 11 receives a periphery 19 of the plastics sheet 10 with suitable seals 20, 21 mounted between the frame 11 and plastics sheet 11.

Sealing means comprising an inflatable tube 25 is mounted on 10 the frame 11 in an outer channel 26. The tube 25 extends around the sides 14, 15 and bottom 12 of the frame 11. An Lshaped angle cleat 28 having an arcuate outer edge 29 is mounted within the outer channel 26 inwardly of the tube 25 at each corner connection between the bottom 12 and sides 14, 15 of the frame 11 to prevent damage to the tube 25 at the corners. A copper pipe 32 is retained within the outer channel 26 on the top 13 of the frame 11 by an elongate plate 33 which engages grooves 34 at each side of a mouth 35 of the outer channel 26. The inflatable tube 25 is vulcanised on to free ends of the pipe 32. An air valve 38 for inflating the tube 25 and a pressure relief valve 39 to prevent over pressure in the tube 25 are connected to the pipe 32. It will be noted from Figs. 2 and 3 that an inner seal strip 42 is mounted along an inner wall of the outer channel 26. An outer seal strip 43 is mounted on the sides 14, 15 and bottom 12 of the frame 11 engaging the grooves 34 at the mouth 35 of the outer channel 26 and extending outwardly of the frame 11. A number of spaced-apart parallel ribs 44 project outwardly on an outer sealing face of the outer seal strip 43.

The receiver brackets 6, 7 are formed of channel section aluminium having a base portion 45 with an inner wall 46 and an outer wall 47 and spaced-apart outwardly extending side walls 48 defining a rectangular slot 49 at the base portion 45. A lower end of each receiver bracket 6, 7 is closed by a rubber shoe gasket 50 having a base plate 51 with an upstanding rear wall 52 and a gasket 53 with an arcuate front surface 54 on the base plate 51 in front of the rear wall 52. The rear wall 52 locates within the slot 49 of a receiver bracket 6,7 at a lower end of the receiver bracket 6,7. Through holes 58 at an upper end of each receiver bracket 6, 7 receive locking pins 59 to releasably secure the panel 5 in engagement with the receiver bracket 6, 7. Screws (not shown) are provided for rigidly securing the receiver brackets 6, 7 to the sides 3 of the doorway opening 2. Suitable seals 61 are provided on the outer face 47 of each receiver bracket 6, 7.

In use, the receiver brackets 6, 7 are rigidly mounted on the sides 3 of the doorway opening 2 facing each other. To secure the doorway opening 2 against flooding the panel 5 is slidably engaged with the receiver brackets 6, 7, the sides 14, 15 of the frame 11 being received between the side walls 48 of each receiver bracket 6, Ί. When the panel 5 is mounted between the receiver brackets 6, 7 the locking pins 59 are inserted through the holes 58 to rigidly secure the panel 5 in place. A hand operated air pump (not shown) such as a bicycle pump for example, is attached to the air valve 38 and pumped to inflate the tube 25 which pushes out the outer seal strip 43 for sealing engagement between the panel 5 and inner faces 46 of the receiver brackets 6, 7 and the base of the doorway opening 2. The pressure relief valve 39 guards against over inflation of the tube 25 which might damage the tube 25. The doorway opening 2 is thus sealed against flooding to the height of the panel 5. To remove the panel 5 from the receiver brackets 6, 7 the tube 25 is simply deflated and with the locking pins 59 removed the panel 5 can be disengaged from the receiver brackets 6, 7.

A top cover (not shown) may be provided which is engageable with the top 13 of the frame 11 to enclose the air valve 38 and pressure relief valve 39. Where the flood barrier comprises a number of superimposed panels 5 an upper face of the top cover may be adapted for sealing engagement with the bottom 12 of another panel 5 mounted directly above it. Further a rubber strip or the like may be provided on a rear side face of the top cover for sealing engagement between the top cover and the door mounted in the doorway opening 2 to prevent rain running down the door and collecting between the flood barrier and the door.

Referring now to Figs. 7 to 22, there is illustrated another flood barrier 70 which is largely similar to the flood barrier described previously with reference to Figs. 1 to 6 and like parts are assigned the same reference numerals. In this case, locking means for securing the panel 5 within the receiver brackets 6,7 comprises bolts 71 slidably mounted on the top 13 of the support frame 11 engageable with complementary slots 72 provided at an upper end of each receiver bracket 6,7. The bolts 71 are shown in Figs. 13 and 14 and comprise an elongate body 73 having a central cut-out axial slot 74. Each bolt 71 has a front face 75 and rear face 76 interconnected by a top face 77 and bottom face 78. It will be noted that the top face 77 and bottom face 78 taper inwardly towards the rear face 76. As can be seen in Fig. 10 a pair of the bolts 71 slidably engage complementary V-shaped channels 79 on opposite sides of the top 13 of the support frame. The bolts 71 are mounted on a tubular collar 80 fixed in a through hole 81 (see Fig. 12) in the top 13 of the support frame and project outwardly through the slots 74 in the bolts 71. Screws 82 fastened at outer ends of the collar 80 which is internally threaded retain the bolts 71 on the collar 80. A second through hole 85 is provided in the top 13 inwardly of the through hole 81, this through hole 85 being uncovered when the bolt 71 is advanced to a locked position (as shown in Fig. 9). To lock the bolt 71 in the engaged position a locking bar 86 having a flanged end 87 can be slipped through the through hole 85 from a door side of the through hole 85 to prevent unauthorised release of the bolts 71. The locking bar 86 only needs to be sufficiently long such that it cannot be pushed back through the through hole 85 without the door being opened.

Referring now in particular to Fig. 17, the mounting of the tube 25 within the frame 11 will be described. As previously described, the tube 25 locates within channels in the sides 14, 15 and bottom 12 of the support frame 11. A free end 90 of the tube 25 is sleeved on to a rubber bung 91 and secured to the bung 91 in an airtight manner by a number of clips 92 which encircle the free end 90 of the tube 25. An inner end 93 of the tube 25 is similarly sleeved on to another bung 94 to which it is fastened by clips 92. However, the bung 94 has a central through passage to receive a nylon air supply line 95 which passes through the frame 11 (passage shown in broken outline in Fig. 7) to an air inlet connector 96 mounted on an inner face of the bottom 12 of the support frame 11. Thus, when the flood barrier is mounted in front of a door for example the connector 96 is hidden from view and unaccessible when the door is closed. A coupling 97 is provided adjacent the inlet end 93 of the tube 25 to allow rapid and easy replacement of the tube 25 if the tube becomes damaged. The air inlet connector 96 has an inlet 98 onto which is screwed an adaptor 99 (Fig. 18). The adaptor 99 has a stepped central air passage 100 with an internally threaded inner end 101 for connection to the inlet 98 and an externally threaded outer end 102 for reception of a bicycle pump connector or the like. An air stop valve (not shown) is housed within the air passage 100. It will be noted that the adaptor 99 has a radial groove 103 formed adjacent its outer end 102, the groove 103 connecting by a hole 104 with the air passage 100. A peristaltic type neoprene tube (not shown) locates within the groove 103 to seal the hole 104 to form a pressure release valve to prevent over pressure in the tube 25 when inflating the tube. For example, the tube can be adapted to blow if the air pressure exceeds 30 lbs/sq. inch (2 bar).

It will be appreciated that the invention provides a simple and easily operated flood barrier. By making the height of the barrier not more than say 2 ft. then the flood barrier can easily be stepped over thus allowing access for persons through the doorway opening while keeping out flood waters.

It will be noted that the flood barrier can also be used on doorways or passageways within buildings, for example, in industrial applications, to retain water, liquid chemicals, oil or the like within a room or compartment in which they are spilled.

While in the embodiment described herein the flood barrier is shown mounted in a doorway opening, the flood barrier may be adapted for mounting at other openings such as at windows, air vent shafts and the like.

It is envisaged that in some cases the receiver brackets may be integrally formed with a periphery of the opening, for example where the opening is a doorway the receiver brackets may be incorporated in the door frame.

It is also envisaged that in some cases the flood barrier may comprise the receiver brackets and a number of the panels mounted in the receiver brackets one above the other, to provide the desired height of flood protection.

It will be appreciated that the flood barriers may be of any suitable materials of construction.

The invention is not limited to the embodiments hereinbefore described which may be varied in both construction and detail.

Claims (18)

1. A demountable flood barrier for mounting at an opening to prevent passage of liquid through the opening, comprising a liquid resistant panel for 5 mounting across at least a lower portion of the opening, mounting means for supporting the panel at the opening, and sealing means for engagement between the panel and a periphery of the opening, the sealing means being a flexible sealing strip and an 10 associated inflatable tube mounted behind the sealing strip, the tube being inflatable to urge the sealing strip into sealing engagement between the panel and the periphery of the opening.

2. A flood barrier as claimed in claim 1 wherein the 15 sealing strip has an outer sealing surface with a number of spaced-apart ribs.

3. A flood barrier as claimed in any preceding claim wherein the sealing means is mounted on the panel.

4. A flood barrier as claimed in claim 3 wherein the 20 sealing means extends along at least portion of an outer edge of the panel.

5. A flood barrier as claimed in any preceding claim wherein the tube is located in an associated channel provided along the outer edge of the panel. 25

6. A flood barrier as claimed in any preceding claim wherein the mounting means comprises a pair of receiver brackets for mounting at opposite sides of the opening, the panel being releasably engageable with the receiver brackets.

7. A flood barrier as claimed in claim 6 wherein the panel is slidably engageable with the receiver brackets.

8. A flood barrier as claimed in claim 7 wherein the received brackets are of channel section.

9. A flood barrier as claimed in claim 8 wherein the flood barrier is for mounting at an opening having a flat base with upstanding sides, the receiver brackets for attachment to the sides in an upright 10. Position with channels on the brackets for reception of the panel facing each other, lower ends of each channel being curved outwardly to provide rounded corners between the sides and base of the opening.

10. A flood barrier as claimed in any of claims 1 to 5 15 wherein the mounting means is a U-shaped bracket of channel section for mounting at a lower end of the opening to sealingly engage sides and a base of the opening, with an inwardly facing channel of the bracket for reception of the panel. 20

11. A flood barrier as claimed in any preceding claim wherein locking means is provided to releasably secure the panel on the mounting means.

12. A flood barrier as claimed in claim 11 wherein the locking means are locking pins engageable with 25 associated through holes at an upper end of each receiver bracket to retain the panel in engagement with the receiver brackets beneath the pins.

13. A flood barrier as claimed in claim 11 wherein the locking means comprises sliding bolts on the panel engageable with complementary slots on the receiver bracket.

14. A flood barrier as claimed in claim 13 wherein means is provided to lock the bolts in an engaged position. 5 15. A flood barrier as claimed in any preceding claim wherein the panel comprises a rigid plastic sheet mounted in a rectangular aluminium support frame having an inner channel for reception of the plastic sheet and an outer channel extending around the sides 10 and bottom of the support frame for reception of the tube which is mounted behind the sealing strip which extends across a mouth of the outer channel. 16. A flood barrier as claimed in any preceding claim wherein a pressure relief valve is provided for the

15. Tube.

16. 17. A flood barrier substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to Figs. 1 to 6 of the drawings.

17. 18. A flood barrier substantially as hereinbefore

18. 20 described with reference to Figs. 7 to 22 of the drawings.