JPH0478690A - Modular suspended structure and production thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To facilitate construction of a float structural body by laying structural bar members in grooves formed on an exposed surface of a bladder member, then charging a layer of fiber reinforced concrete onto the exposed surface, and hardening it to composed a float unit. CONSTITUTION: A float bladder member 10 having an exposed upper surface 12 is made of styrofoam block or the like. A plurality of grooves 14 are formed on the upper surface 12, parallely to each other. Structural support bar members 34 are arranged in the grooves 14 of the float bladder member 10. The support bar members 34 are supported to a steel frame 40 at their both ends, through a protection sheet 36 which is arranged along a tapered surface 20 on an upper and outer periphery of the bladder member 40. A layer 48 of glass fiber reinforced concrete is charged onto the upper surface 12 of the bladder member 10 to the specified thickness with the frame member 40 being as a partition wall. After hardening the concrete, the frame 40 is removed to obtain a single float unit. The units are connected to each other to obtain a float structural body.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention The present invention relates to marinas, docks, floats and similar swim bladder structures and methods of manufacturing these structures.

[Conventional technology and its problems]

Traditionally, marine docks, floats, and similar swim bladder structures have been made from a variety of conventional materials and utilizing conventional methods.

Under certain conditions, it is desirable to utilize prefabricated modular structures within a manufacturing facility to assemble a marina, dock, or similar floatation bladder structure in an inexpensive and efficient manner. One such technology is U.S. Patent No. 4, issued to Thompson.
, 715,307, which discloses a mat having a layer of glass fiber reinforced concrete placed over a swim bladder element, the swim bladder element having been sprayed with glass fiber reinforcement of the concrete. It's Toshide.

Other interesting prior art includes the following US patents:

No. 4,265,193 to Sluys, US Pat. No. 4,118,239 to Gagin, and US Pat.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,936,20, issued to
No. 9, U.S. Pat. No. 3,6, issued to Duff.
No. 64.287, U.S. Pat. No. 3,659,540 to Toby et al., U.S. Pat.
US Pat. No. 2,689,381, issued to E.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention is directed to a system and method for constructing a dock, float, or similar swim bladder structure;
The system and method includes creating a plurality of swim bladder modules according to a preferred embodiment of the method and combining the modules to form a marine dock, float, etc.-
This includes the process of tying them together.

According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, each swim bladder module is created by providing a swim bladder member and forming a groove in at least one exposed surface of the swim bladder member extending across the exposed surface. The other exposed surface of the swim bladder member is covered with a protective sheet. Structural bars are suspended in the valley. A layer of fiber-reinforced concrete is poured over one side of the bladder member into the groove and around each bar in the groove, the layer being spread over the layer to a predetermined thickness and Solidification occurs due to the interconnected relationship between the bar and the surface of the bladder member. A first interconnectable rib is then attached to at least a portion of the outer periphery of the surface.6 Suitably, the rib is attached to the surface by utilizing a tip of the embedded structural bar. It is attached to the combination of a swim bladder member and a layer of concrete. The rods are also utilized to formwork along the sides of the bladder member to define the concrete layer during fabrication.

It is also preferred that the protective sheet comprises fiber reinforced concrete having longer glass fiber strands than the fiber reinforcement of the concrete layer.

After fabrication of a plurality of modules according to the steps described above, the method of the present invention can also be used to assemble a tonk from the plurality of modules by interconnecting the modules at the stand-up. The two or more interconnected modules then form a unitary structure that is easily assembled at the desired location. The individual modules are
Swim bladder members of different thicknesses, different densities, or both can be utilized from other modules to obtain modules with different freeboard or weight-load characteristics. In addition to this, adjacent modules may be placed apart from each other, and when the interconnected modules are placed in the desired location, architectural elements can be passed between the modules and suspended above the water. This makes it possible. Although such architectural elements primarily serve an aesthetic function, they also serve useful functions, such as knee places between lateral rows of modules that protrude from the center span and form finger docks. It can be helpful.

[Effect]

Thus, the modular construction technique of the present invention provides a relatively inexpensive structure with a high degree of flexibility that can be fabricated in a short period of time and installed in a simple manner.

Example C: A preferred embodiment of a system and method for fabricating individual modules for use in multi-module structures includes:
This will now be explained with reference to Figures 1-10. Of course, it will be appreciated that minor modifications and improvements may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the systems and methods of the present invention.

As can be seen in Figures 1 and 2, first, the exposed upper surface 1
2 is prepared.

By way of example, a block of styrofoam having a density of about 0.5 kg (1.1 lb) is suitable.

However, this specified dimension and flotation force of the swim bladder member 10 is not critical; for each module,
It may vary considerably to achieve widely varied freeboard and load characteristics.

The swim bladder member 10 is provided with a plurality of grooves 14 extending across the first surface 12; the grooves 14 are generally parallel to each other and laterally across the short dimension (i.e., width) of the swim bladder member 10. Although it is preferable that the cross section extends in one direction, in some cases it may extend longitudinally across the long dimension. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the valley groove 14 has an outward slope (chamfer) 16 at its upper part and an inward slope 18 at its bottom, and the upper part is wider than the lower part.

As is clear from the structure shown in FIG. 8, the slope 16.
18 prevents the formation of stress lines after the valley groove 14 is filled with reinforced concrete. The slope 20 at the end is formed around the outer periphery of the swim bladder member 10 and below the level of the surface 12.

Even after forming the groove 14 in the negative top surface 12 of the swim bladder member 10, the member 10 remains exposed until covered with a protective sheet 36, as will be explained hereinafter. and opposing sides 17 and 19.

The corners (eg, corners 22 and 24) of the swim bladder member 10 are chamfered to ensure continuous adhesion of the protective sheet 36.

Although not absolutely necessary, it is desirable to form a longitudinal utility chase 26 in the bladder member 10 below the level of the groove 14 thereof. Additionally, a lateral utility frame groove 28 may be provided as well. Frame groove 2 for both utilities
6 and 28 extend through a central utility opening 30 formed in the negative upper surface 12 of the swim bladder member 10.

These grooves 14, ramps 16, 18, utility slots 26 and 28, and utility openings 30 are all connected to the Styrofoam swim bladder member 10 using a conventional hot wire (H).
ot wire forming techniques, in which a thin hot wire is brought into contact with the dense styrofoam and a portion of the member is cut to form the desired shape.

To form the utility groove, the hot wire may penetrate downwardly into the bladder member, for example along longitudinal line 27, to form the utility groove 26 to the desired depth.

Turning to FIGS. 3 and 4, after the bladder member 10 has been formed in the desired manner, structural support bars 34 are suspended within the grooves 14. Each structural bar 34 has a protective shoe 35 (see FIG. 14); each bar 34 may be slidably engaged within a respective sheath 35, with both The tip is sized such that it projects somewhat beyond the raised area forming the upper side 12 of the swim bladder member 10. Each end of each bar 34 has a built-in threaded connector 32.

The explanation will now turn to FIGS. 6, 7, and 8. As a next step, a thin protective sheet 36 (e.g., glass fiber reinforced concrete or polymeric resin) of approximately 9 mm (3/8°") thickness is applied to the other exposed surface 11 of the swim bladder member 10.
13.15.17 and 19 and is applied (e.g., by spraying) along the slope 20 around the upper circumference of the swim bladder member above it. It will be appreciated that even when the swim bladder member 10 floats in water, the impregnated sheet 36 is inert, so that the sheet 36 serves as a barrier to water ingress into the Styrofoam member 10.

As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, a longitudinal steel formwork 40 is attached along the swim bladder member 10 and overlapped with the protective sheet 36. As shown in FIGS. Steel formwork 40 is attached to swim bladder member 10 using threaded bolts 44 that enter connector 32 and hold formwork 40 in the desired position. Similarly, a transverse steel formwork 42 is provided as shown in FIG.
It protrudes slightly outward. A layer 48 of glass fiber reinforced concrete is then predefined over the top side 12 of the float member 10 within the groove 14 and around the structural bars 34 and connectors 32, using the formwork members 40, 42 as a barrier. It is poured to the desired thickness. Preferably, the layer 48 of glass fiber reinforced concrete is pea-grade.
grade) crushed stone and glass fiber strands shorter than the strands used in the protective sheet 36.

A layer of concrete 48 is solidified in interconnected relationship to the bars 34, connectors 32 and bladder member I2, forming an upper support surface 49 for the entire structure.

After the concrete layer 48 has fully hardened, the screwed bolts 44 and formwork 40.42 are removed and the eighth
A single flotation unit is left, as shown, which serves as a module for a marina, dock or other swim bladder structure. The threaded outer tip of each connector 32 is exposed at the outer periphery of the layer of concrete 48 and connects the module to other adjacent modules in a manner that will now be described with reference to FIGS. 9 and 10.
It will be appreciated that they can be used to interconnect.

FIG. 9 shows parts of two interconnectable modules, each made in the manner described above. The first module, referred to by the all-inclusive swim bladder member 10, includes the various elements shown in FIGS. 1-8 and described in the description with reference thereto. The second module, designated by the reference numeral 110, includes various parts and elements that are identical to those of module 10 and are referred to with like reference numerals with the prefix "1°°. For example, the module 110 is the connector 13
2, includes structural bar 134 and upper support surface 149. It will be appreciated that module 110 is essentially identical to module 10. first module 10
and the second module 110, it extends along the longitudinal sides of the swim bladder member 10 to the outer periphery of the layer of concrete 48 and is superimposed on the protective sheet 36 (note FIG. 10). 52.1 First Interconnectable Waist
A course of 52 wells is provided.

Each of the first interconnectable risers 52.152 is preferably approximately 7.5 cm x 20 cm (3
10."x8") wood board (although other materials are suitable) and of sufficient length to overlap one adjacent side of the module 10.110; The connectors 32.132 of adjacent modules are adapted to be interconnected with at least two of the connectors 32.132. In this way, the first riser 152 of the second module 110 overlaps the seam 60 between the two modules and also the connector 3
Even if there is no physical contact between the two, the two overlap. Similarly, about 10
The other logging of the second interconnectable groin 54.154 on the order of clIX 30 cv+ (4' X 12") extends to and has an overlapping relationship with the logging of the first groin 52.152. That is, the second rib 54 overlaps the seam 53 between the first rib 52.152;
Seam 58 between 540 is spaced apart from seam 53. First tummy tuck 52.152 and second tummy tuck 54.
154 refers to the first and second tummy tucks 5 that are adjacent to each other.
2.152.54.154 together with the respective first and second modules 10.110 by mechanical bolts 56.156 extending through the logging to the corresponding one of the threaded connectors 32.132. is being used.

When so assembled, the first and second modules 10.110 are a fixed, unitary structure.

A resilient friction rail 58 raises the boat 54.1
54 and bolts 56.156 may be attached to the second row of risers 54.154. Conventional mesh stops 62 are shown attached to the rows of the second risers 54.

Details of the structure and alternative forms are shown in Figures 11-14. As shown in FIG. 11, a conventional water conduit 66 is installed along the longitudinal side of one of a number of interconnected modules (eg, module 10, 110 of FIG. 9) using suitable brackets 64. It is covered all over the place. As shown in FIG. 12, the bracket 64 is shown attached to a through bolt 70 that secures the leash 62 to the integral structure. Similarly, in FIG. 12, the friction rail 59 is shown as an alternative form including a wooden member 59 having a groove for receiving the head of the mechanical bolt 56; It will also be appreciated that a recess may be provided to receive the head of 56. FIG. 13 shows details of the triple bulge structure, in which the two inner bulwarks 151.52 are supported by brackets 65 and support the oversized fuel line to be protected by the bulwark system. 67 to provide sufficient thickness to accommodate 67.

A first marina building utilizing a plurality of swim bladder modules made in accordance with the present invention will now be described with reference to FIG. The marina building, commonly referred to by the reference numeral 200, includes a center span, similar to that shown and described with reference to FIG.
In FIG. 5, it is formed by identical modules, designated for convenience as modules 10 and 110. The two modules 10 and 110 are thus interconnected by a system of stand-ups 52.152.54.154. In addition, this marina structure 200 also includes finger vias, which are formed by identical swim bladder modules 210 made in the manner described above and interconnected in the same manner by corresponding vents. Ru. The swim bladder modules 210 may be specifically designed such that their corresponding top surfaces are coplanar with the top surface of the module 10.110, so as to otherwise achieve a lower freeboard. It will be appreciated that it may be specifically designed to have less buoyancy or be less thick (or both). Under these circumstances, the area 212 of the swim bladder module 210 immediately adjacent to the mid-span module 110 may be accessed by a person walking into the swim bladder module 2.
A ramp or similar means may be provided to allow access to the finger pier formed by 10.

It will be appreciated that the swim bladder modules 10.110 and 210 are, of course, designed to float on the surface of the body of water in which the structure 200 is placed. However, under certain circumstances it may be desirable to attach the structure 200 to pilings, such as piles 216, to prevent lateral movement of the structure 200 across the upper surface of the body of water. To this end, a frame 214 is provided that engages the pile 216 and includes frame side plates 218 and rollers 220 to allow the structure 200 to rise and fall in accordance with the level of the body of water in which the marina structure is placed. do.

For both practical and aesthetic reasons, it may be desirable to place certain architectural elements between adjacent swim bladder modules.

Such architectural elements
It serves to brace the finger piers formed by the swim bladder member 210 to the center span, and also provides a pleasing and aesthetic appearance. Each knee place deck 230 is formed from a slat 238;
There is an interconnection between adjacent bladder modules, details of which are shown in the cutaway side cross-sectional view of FIG. As shown there, two steel L-brackets 232 are provided, each attached to a second riser 154 and a support stud 236. Additional support stand 23
4 are also provided to form a knee place deck 230 with slats 238 extending between the support studs.

Other alternative forms of architectural elements useful with the present invention include:
17 and 18, in which a composite marina building is generally referred to by the reference numeral 250 and includes a central module 260 made in the manner described above with respect to FIGS. 1-8. . module 260
includes a central vertical utility slot groove 262 and a horizontal utility slot slot 264 that all extend through two spaced utility openings 266.

A second individual module 268 forms finger vias in a manner generally similar to that described above with respect to FIG. The module 268 is a nibrace deck 230
The braces are tightened.

As shown in the left and right sides of FIG. 17 and the cross-sectional view of FIG. 18, a module is provided on the bridge whose upper surface is covered with wooden boards 280. Attention to FIG. 18 shows that each of these modules includes a swim bladder member 270, a vertically extending central joist 271, and a vertical side joist 272. A lateral place 273 extends between each lateral root formula 272 and across the center joist 271 . First and second raisers 274 and 276 are provided with friction rails 278 forming the outer surface. Structural bars 282 extend laterally through each module, interconnecting the lateral roots and risers 274,276.

A wooden plank 280 covers the top and connects to the central joist 271 and the vertical side joists 272. A fiberglass utility channel 282 hangs from the bottom of place 273 and holds various water lines, fuel lines, etc. (not numbered, but shown in cross-section in FIG. 18).

A second marina building 300 is shown in FIG. 19, which includes three different modules 310, 320.
It includes a T-shaped building formed of multiple modules consisting of 330 and 330 modules.

The two floating modules are interconnected by the knee-raising system described above and are provided with knee-place plates 230.

Another alternative type of floating structure 400 is shown in FIG. The structure 400 is suitable for situations where it is desirable for floating members to take a migratory path.

To this end, a plurality of equal floating modules 410 are provided, made in the manner described above, but utilizing insertable members to add curvature to the structure. Between the adjacent force-build modules 410, the model is raised 4
20 are arranged to facilitate direction change effects on the entire building. All modules 410 are interconnected by stand-up 430 in the manner described above.

FIG. 21 shows an optional construction of an individual module according to the invention, showing a swim bladder member 5 having grooves 14 and structural bars 34 substantially identical to those of the construction shown in FIG.
Contains 00. However, in the structure of FIG. 21, only shallow trenches 502 are located between adjacent deeper trenches 14, and overlying layer 48 covers both trenches 14 and 5.
It has entered into 02.

FIG. 22 shows an alternative configuration 8o in which the bladder member is provided with transverse grooves 82 and transverse structural bars 84 that extend outwardly through the concrete layer 48 and at their distal ends. The connector 32 allows the side risers 86 and 88 to be firmly fixed by the bolt 90.

Such structures are useful, for example, at the ends of docks or marinas.

It will be appreciated that we have described here a cheap and efficient manufacturing technique for a large number of modules, which can be easily assembled into composite constructions of floating docks and other floating bladder structures. may be interconnected together to form a.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway top plan view of a swim bladder member useful in the methods and structures of the present invention; FIG.
FIG. 3 is a partial cross-sectional view of the swim bladder member shown in FIG. 1 taken along line 3--3; FIG. 4 is a side view of the swim bladder member shown in FIG. FIG. 5 is a partial cross-sectional view taken along line 4-4; FIG. 5 is an end view of the swim bladder member shown in FIGS. 1 and 2; FIG. 6 illustrates steps in the module manufacturing method of the present invention. 4 is a drawing similar to FIG. 7, FIG. 7 is a drawing similar to FIG. 6 explaining the steps in the manufacturing method of the present invention, and FIG.
A partially cutaway side view illustrating a swim bladder member that has undergone several steps including those described in the figures; Figure 9 shows two modules made by the method described in Figures 1-8; 10 is a top plan view of a portion of FIG. 9 illustrating how a number of modules are brought together according to the present invention; FIG. Figures 12 and 13 are partial side sectional views of one module of the invention showing details of an alternative construction; Figure 14 is a side sectional view of a connector for an individual module; FIG. 16 is a top plan view of a portion of a multi-module layout for a dock according to the invention, with some modules forming the central span and other modules forming lateral finger piers for the dock; Part 116- of the dock shown in FIG.
FIG. 17 is a top plan view of a multi-module floating dock similar to that of FIG. 15, showing floating modules with aesthetic architectural features; FIG. 18 is a side cross-sectional view taken along line 18-18 of FIG. 17; FIG. 19 is a top plan view of a multi-module dock structure made in accordance with the present invention; FIG. FIG. 21 is a top plan view of a recirculating multi-module floating structure made in accordance with an alternative format; FIG. 21 is a cut away side sectional view showing an alternative structure of the present invention; FIG. 2 is a partially cutaway top plan view of an alternative mold of the present invention. 10, 110.210.260.268.270.31
0.320.330.410.500 - Swim bladder member / Swim bladder module, 11.12.13.15.17.19 - Exposed surface,
14.82-m-ditch, 16.1-day, 20-m-slope, 22.24-corner,
26.28.262.264.282 Frame groove for knees, 27--wire, 30.26 Lo---utility opening, 32.132---connector, 34.
84.134.282--Structural support rod, 35-11 Protective sheath, 36--Protective sheet, 40.42
-m=steel formwork, 44.56.70.90.1
56--Bolts, 48--Layer of glass fiber reinforced concrete, 49.149--One upper support surface, 51
．． 52.54.86.88.152.154.274.
276.420.430--raise one litter, 5
3.58.60-Eleventh seam, 58.59.
278--One friction rail, 62--One rope stop, 6
4.65.232--Bracket, 6-row water pipe,
6-Fuel line, 80-m-Alternative configuration;
200.250.300---marina structures,
212--area, 214--111 frame, 216--pile, 21B--frame side plate, 220--1 roller 230--m
;・Place Detsuki, 234.236--
- support stud, 238 --- slat, 271
．． 272--One joist, 273 m-Side place, 280--Some planks, 400
---Floating Structure, 502--Shallow Ditch.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1) A method for manufacturing a swim bladder module for a dock, float, or similar swim bladder structure, one module of which can be interconnected with adjacent modules to form a larger structure, comprising: A method characterized by comprising the steps of: providing a swim bladder member; forming grooves in at least one exposed surface of the swim bladder member extending across the exposed surface; and forming grooves in some of the grooves. A step of hanging structural rods, a step of covering the exposed surface of the float bladder member with a protective sheet, and then pouring a layer of fiber-reinforced concrete on the exposed surface into the groove and around each rod; spreading to a predetermined thickness on the exposed surface and then solidifying the layer into interconnected relationship with the bar and the swim bladder member surface; and a first interconnectable whaler; applying to at least a portion of the outer periphery of the layer. 2) further comprising the step of sizing each structural bar such that the tip of each bar extends beyond an adjacent side of the surface. Method. 3) The method according to claim 2, further comprising the step of attaching the belly raiser to a module having the tip of the bar. 4) The method according to claim 3, characterized in that the steps of pouring and spreading the layer include the following steps: preparing a peripheral formwork, and using the formwork as the bar material. attaching it to the swim bladder member having a tip end thereof. 5) further comprising the step of laterally extending a structural bar from each opposite end of the surface.
The method described in section. 6) The fiber reinforced concrete is of pea-grain grade (pea-gr.
5. A method according to claim 4, characterized in that it comprises pourable concrete having a crushed stone component. 7) The method according to claim 4, wherein the protective sheet is inert to water. 8) The method according to claim 7, wherein the inert protective sheet comprises fiber reinforced concrete. 9) The method of claim 8, wherein the inert protective sheet comprises glass fiber reinforced concrete. 10) The method of claim 9, wherein said glass fiber reinforced concrete sheet has longer fiber strands than said concrete layer on said one side of said float member. 11) A method according to claim 1 or 8, further comprising the steps of first applying the protective sheet and then overlapping the sheet with the concrete layer. 12) The method according to claim 3, further comprising the step of attaching a second tummy tuck to the first tummy tuck and overlapping it. 13) The method of claim 3, further comprising the steps of: attaching a threaded connector to each bar and embedding each connector within the layer; , extending a threaded bolt through the bulge and into each threaded connector. 14) The method according to claim 1, further comprising the following step: forming the layer by arranging a mold around the outer periphery of the swim bladder member surface. and attaching the formwork to the bar. 15) The method of claim 14, further comprising the steps of: attaching a threaded connector to each bar and embedding each connector in the layer; Extending threaded bolts through the formwork and into each connector. 16) The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of forming a utility chase on the one side of the swim bladder member below the groove. 17) The groove forming step includes the step of forming each groove substantially wider adjacent the surface of the bladder member than at the distal end of the groove. the method of. 18) Claim 1, wherein the swim bladder member includes high-density styrofoam (expanded polystyrene).
The method described in section. 19) A method of constructing a dock, float or similar swim bladder structure comprising the steps of: making a plurality of swim bladder modules according to the method of claim 1; , and attaching the modules together in a raised position of each module. 20) The method according to claim 19, further comprising the following steps; a step of providing a space between adjacent modules; and a step of providing a space between the adjacent modules. The process of placing structural elements within. 21) The method of claim 20, further comprising the step of suspending the structural element above water when the swim bladder structure is floating. 22) The method of claim 19, further comprising the step of making one of the modules have a greater buoyancy force than the other of the modules. 23) The method of claim 19, further comprising the step of making one of the modules have a greater freeboard than the other of the modules. 24) The method of claim 19, further comprising the step of making one of the modules have greater buoyancy and freeboard than the other of the modules. 25) The method according to claim 19, characterized in that the attaching step includes the following steps; aligning the first module transversely and generally parallel to the surface of the swim bladder member; attaching the belly-up of the first module to the rod of the first module generally perpendicular thereto; aligning the rod across and generally parallel to the surface of the swim bladder member of the second module; vertically attaching the first module, and overlapping the first module along with the second module. 26) A method of constructing a dock, float, or similar swim bladder structure, characterized by including the following steps: preparing two swim bladder members, and separately covering each swim bladder member with an inert protective sheet. covering, then depositing a settable layer on the first, upper surface of each swim bladder member, overlapping the edges of the sheet, and then setting the layer; joining means for interconnection; surrounding at least a portion of the outer periphery of each swim bladder member, and interconnecting the swim bladder members by the joining means. 27) The method of claim 26, further comprising the steps of: extending a structural bar through the solidifiable layer of each module; interconnecting bars with said joining means; 28) A swim bladder module for a dock, float or similar swim bladder structure, characterized in that it comprises: a swim bladder member having, on one side thereof, a groove extending across the surface; a protective sheet overlaid on the other side of the swim bladder member; a layer of fiber-reinforced concrete overlaid in the groove; structural bars extending through the layer of concrete in some of the grooves; interconnecting means around at least a portion of the circumference of the structural bar, the interconnection means being interconnected with the structural bar; 29) A module according to claim 28, characterized in that the layer of concrete overlaps the protective sheet. 30) A dock or similar floating structure, characterized in that it comprises: a first module as claimed in claim 28; as claimed in claim 28; and means for joining the interconnection means of the first module to the second module and for joining the interconnection means of the second module to the first module. .