JP2005522604A - Construction joint - Google Patents

Abstract

The expansion joint (1), between two construction sections (5) e.g. of a highway, is a thermoplastic profile with two mounting points (2) at the ends at the constructions, and take up any forces. A distorting section (3) is between the mountings to take up any movements. Each mounting point has an upper surface (8) to extend the road surface (6) at the constructions. The ends of the joint are held in place by rigid bars (4) with in longitudinal recesses (7).

Description

  The present invention relates to a joint used to connect construction members that can move relatively with respect to each other and can support an external load.

  A representative but non-limiting example of such a joint is a road joint. The function of the road joint is to fill the gaps separating the structural members on which the road is built, i.e. the discontinuous part, and the relative relative of the structural members to each other by dynamic loading and / or thermal deformation. By allowing movement, the road surface is made continuous.

  Another requirement imposed on road joints is that the road joints are sufficiently sealed to prevent liquids (rainwater, oil, salt spray, etc.) that tend to spread on the road from entering between structural members. Road joints also need to collect liquids so that these liquids do not collect at least across the road.

  In addition to these requirements, road joints must have good resistance to wear caused by vehicles repeatedly passing on the road. Road joints must have high ozone resistance because they are always outside and therefore in contact with atmospheric gases, and must have good resistance to radiation, especially ultraviolet radiation. The road joint must have sufficient mechanical strength to withstand the operating load, ie the weight of the vehicle, plus the dynamic forces generated by the movement of the vehicle. Road joints must also exhibit stable properties as a function of temperature within the normal range of external temperatures (typically -30 ° C to + 40 ° C). Finally, given the very competitive market, the cost of realizing road joints should be as small as possible.

  Some road joints currently have material properties that more or less meet the above requirements. Conventionally used joints have deformable parts made of elastomer, in particular rubber. For example, a joint with an elastomeric bellows that fits on each side of the discontinuity in two aluminum moldings that rest on a structural member that supports the road (see, for example, French Patent Application Publication No. 2758348). ) In this case, the bellows is suspended above the discontinuous portion without directly contacting the member. The aluminum molded part is fixed to the structural member by screws or nails, for example. A protective steel plate attached to the fixed molded part with a screw may cover the bellows.

  Another known joint is a pre-assembled joint made of elastomer that covers a cast iron insert. The inserts are thus protected against corrosion by the elastomeric material that covers them. However, this covering is very complicated to manufacture industrially. Such a joint further has a thin elastomer part integral with the covering of the insert and suspended above the discontinuity. This narrow part may have the shape of a concave bellows, for example. The joint is secured to the structural member by screws that penetrate the metal insert. This type of joint is usually molded over a length of about 1 meter.

  Another type of road joint, which allows for very large variations in the width of the discontinuity, has a deformable portion constituted by an assembly of hinged mechanical parts. This avoids problems caused by the choice of elastomeric material. However, such joints are relatively expensive due to the considerable number of parts that are manufactured and assembled.

  An object of the present invention is to provide a construction joint, particularly a road joint, which is low in manufacturing cost and can be installed very easily.

  Accordingly, the present invention is a construction joint that is inserted between two adjacent construction members, each on two construction members designed to withstand external loads that sometimes work on the two construction members. An integral molded part made of thermoplastic having two mounting parts for mounting and a deformable part extending between the two mounting parts and allowing the two construction members to move relative to each other. Provide a construction joint having.

  Different thermoplastics fully meet the different requirements imposed by the function of construction joints, in particular with regard to elasticity, sealing, resistance to operating loads. The structure of the joint consisting essentially of an integrally formed part allows its low manufacturing costs. Furthermore, the joint is very easy to implement, which is a considerable advantage. The molded part may have a length equal to the width of the construction member, for example the width of the road. Since some parts are welded at their original positions, it is easy to transport in a short time. Welding is facilitated by using thermoplastics.

According to preferred features of the invention,
-Each mounting part of the forming part has an upper surface extending to a continuous part of the road surface of the construction member;
-The upper surface of each mounting part has a longitudinal groove and the joint is rigidly held, preferably made of metal (especially aluminum or stainless steel), placed in the groove of the mounting part A fixing means for fixing the rod and the holding rod and the mounting portion to the two construction members;
-The holding rod has an oblong hole to accept the fixing means,
-Each mounting part of the molded part receives a holding bar extending substantially over the entire length of the joint;
-Alternatively, each mounting part of the forming part accepts several continuous holding bars over the length of the joint,
-The thermoplastic of the molded part contains a high density polyolefin such as polyethylene or polypropylene,
-Molded part is extrusion molded,
-The deformable part of the support has at least one liquid flow-off / collecting groove on the surface of the construction member,
-The deformable part of the molded part has the shape of a concave bellows,
The deformable part of the molded part has a thickness considerably less than the thickness of the mounting part, preferably less than 10 millimeters,
-The deformable part of the molded part is in the shape of a biconcave bellows,
-Each mounting part of the forming part has at least one longitudinal cavity;

  Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent in the following description of non-limiting embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of the present invention. This shows, for example, a road joint 1 straddling two adjacent construction members 5 made of concrete slabs or bridge deck parts. A road 6 is formed on the upper surface of the construction member 5. Since the joints 5 are separated, the road 6 will have discontinuities when the road joint 1 is not present. The road joint 1 connects the construction members 5 to make the road continuous.

  The edges of the member 5 that support the joint 1 are subject to relative movement with respect to each other, especially when the vehicle passes the road 6 or because of the thermal expansion of the construction member. The road joint 1 absorbs deformation resulting from such movement.

  The road joint shown in FIG. 1 basically consists of an integrally molded part 1 made of thermoplastic.

  Thermoplastics constitute an important class of synthetic materials. They are derived from linear or slightly branched polymers. One of the characteristics of thermoplastics is that they soften under the action of heat, harden when cooled, take a new shape and are therefore easier to weld by local heating.

  Thermoplastics generally also have properties that allow them to meet the above-mentioned requirements for road joints in particular. In particular, thermoplastics have sufficient elasticity to allow considerable deformation, have a liquid tightness, and support the weight of the vehicle and behave like dynamic forces as they move Sufficient mechanical strength to withstand the load.

  Road joints arranged in this way on construction members make it possible to withstand the operating loads applied to the road 6 by vehicles passing through or on top of the joints and without the great risk of breaking. Absorbs the relative motion of the member 5.

  In an advantageous embodiment, the thermoplastic used in the molded part 1 of the road joint is a polyolefin. Polyolefins consist of polymers, copolymers of ethylene, propylene, and heavy ethylene hydrocarbons. They also have a number of required features for road joints. The molded part 1 may thus be made of high density polyethylene (HDPE) or polypropylene (PP). It may also be made from a combination of other thermoplastic or polyolefin type materials.

  The molded part of the thermoplastic may be extruded by a conventional method. This shaped part may be made such that its length covers the full width of the road (about 7 meters in the case of a road with two lanes).

  It is also possible to produce a molded part having a length shorter than the width of the road. In this case, some of the molded parts are connected end to end in the longitudinal direction so as to cover the full width of the road. These molded parts are fixed to each other by bonding with an adhesive or preferably by welding. The properties of thermoplastics such as HDPE make it possible to easily weld the two parts with this same material by heating their ends before joining the ends. Please pay attention to. Manufacturing a molded part having a length shorter than the width of the road has an advantage that a molded part having a short length that can be easily transported and can be used on roads having different widths is obtained.

  The integrally molded portion 1 has two placement portions 2. As shown in FIG. 1, these placement portions are directly placed on the construction member 5, and their side portions are in contact with the road 6. These mounting portions 2 whose upper surface 8 extends to a continuous portion of the road surface of the road 6 receive the load experienced by this road. The thermoplastic provides the mounting part with resistance to these loads, such as the weight of vehicles passing on the road and the dynamic forces caused by these vehicles.

  The mounting portion 2 may optionally have longitudinal cavities 12 and 13 as shown in FIGS. These cavities make it possible to reduce the amount of thermoplastic in the joint and thus reduce their costs. They also make it possible to shorten the time for cooling the thermoplastic following the extrusion of the molding.

  FIG. 1 also shows a narrower part 3 of the molded part 1 of the road joint. This part forms a joint between the two mounting parts 2. This narrower portion 3 has good deformability when both members 5 move relative to each other due to its thinner shape and the thermoplastics that make up it. The elastic properties of the thermoplastics allow this deformation. In an exemplary embodiment of the invention, the narrow portion 3 of the road joint 1 has a thickness of less than 10 mm.

  Many shapes are conceivable for the narrow portion 3. In FIG. 1, the thin part 3 has the shape of a concave bellows. As long as the narrow part 3 is set back with respect to the road 6 (this prevents the part 3 from coming into direct contact with the vehicle traveling on the road and thus avoids excessive wear. ). In addition, such a concave structure has grooves that can collect liquid spreading on the road 6, such as, for example, carrying away oil or sown salt that is also resistant to thermoplastics, or running water. Form. This groove drains water towards the shoulders of the road.

  In the embodiment shown in FIG. 5, the narrow portion 3 has a recess in the shape of two bellows, thus improving its robustness and allowing a double seal barrier to be formed.

  The thermoplastic molding part 1 shown in the figure further comprises a longitudinal groove 7 formed in the upper surface 8 of each of the two mounting parts 2. These grooves may extend over the entire length of the molded part 1. These grooves are advantageously obtained by the shape of the extrusion die for the forming part 1. The groove 7 accommodates the holding bar 4 so that the holding bar 4 fits over its entire length.

  FIG. 2 is a perspective view schematically showing the road joint of FIG. From this figure, it can be seen that the holding bar 4 is arranged in the groove 7 in each support part 2 of the molded part 1 of thermoplastic. Their outer shape is made to match the shape of the groove 7. These holding bars 4 are aligned with the molding part, and the upper surface thereof is the same height as the upper surface 8 of the support part 2, that is, the road surface of the road 6. The holding bar 4 is preferably made of metal, in particular aluminum or stainless steel. The holding bar 4 may extend over the entire length of the joint as a single part. It is also possible to arrange several continuous bars over the entire length of the joint.

  The function of the holding bar 4 is to keep the thermoplastic molded part in contact with the member 5 that supports the road 6. The holding rod 4 has through holes 9 through which fixing means such as screws 10 pass so as to be distributed over the length thereof. These screws pass through the holding bar 4 and the mounting part 2 of the molding part in order to fix them to the underlying construction member. As shown in FIG. 2, these through-holes 9 are advantageously elongate, which is a fixing means in the case of concrete reinforcement bars as seen when penetrating the member 5 in order to position the fixing nails in place. A certain extent is given to the position along 10 molded parts. The holding bar 4 prevents the mounting portion 2 of the molding part from wavy between the fixing screws 10.

  The structure of the road joint and the material used for the molded part 1 and the fixing bar 4 are fixed to the fixed part 4 by using a conventional fixture that is pre-stressed so as not to receive any looseness due to the action of vibration. And can be firmly fixed between the member 5 and the member 5. In order to compensate the deformation due to the creep of the thermoplastic of the molded part 1 by the action of applying the stress in advance, a Belleville washer, that is, a spring-type conventional mechanism may be used.

  The holding bar 4 and the mechanism for fixing them avoids deformation of the thermoplastic of the molded part 1 which may otherwise appear in the structural member 5 via the molded part 1 of the thermoplastic, for example during expansion. Can do.

It is sectional drawing of the road coupling by this invention. It is a perspective view of this joint. It is sectional drawing of other embodiment of the integrally molded part by this invention. It is sectional drawing of other embodiment of the integrally molded part by this invention. It is sectional drawing of other embodiment of the integrally molded part by this invention.

Claims (13)

In construction joints inserted between two adjacent construction members (5),
The joint is designed to withstand external loads that sometimes work on the two construction members, each of two mounting parts (2) resting on the two construction parts, and between the two mounting parts An integral part (1) made of thermoplastic plastic that has a deformable part (3) that extends and allows the two construction members to move relative to each other;
Each mounting part (2) of the molding part (1) has an upper surface (8) extending to a continuous part of the road surface of the construction member (5),
The upper surface (8) of each mounting part (2) has a longitudinal groove (7), and the joint comprises a rigid holding rod (4) placed in the groove of the mounting part, A construction joint, further comprising fixing means (10) for fixing the holding rod and the mounting portion to the two construction members (5).   2. Joint according to claim 1, wherein the retaining bar (4) has an oval hole (9) for receiving the fixing means (10).   3. Joint according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the retaining bar (4) is made of metal, in particular aluminum or stainless steel.   4. Each mounting part (2) of the molded part (1) receives a holding bar (4) extending substantially over the entire length of the joint. Fitting described.   4. Each mounting part (2) of the molding part (1) receives several continuous holding bars (4) over the length of the joint. Fitting described.   6. Joint according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the thermoplastic of the molded part (1) comprises a high density polyethylene or polyolefin such as polypropylene.   The joint according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the molded part (1) is extrusion molded.   The deformable part (3) of the molding part (1) has at least one liquid flow-off / collecting groove on the surface of the construction member (5). Fitting described.   9. Joint according to claim 8, wherein the deformable part (3) of the molded part (1) has the shape of a concave bellows.   The joint according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the deformable part (3) of the molded part (1) has a thickness that is considerably less than the thickness of the mounting part.   11. Joint according to claim 10, wherein the deformable part (3) of the molding (1) has a thickness of less than 10 millimeters.   9. Joint according to claim 8, wherein the deformable part (3) of the shaped part (1) is in the form of a biconcave bellows.   13. Joint according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein each mounting part (2) of the forming part (1) has at least one longitudinal cavity (12, 13).

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