US3822863A

US3822863A - Aluminum barrier support post

Info

Publication number: US3822863A
Application number: US00325408A
Authority: US
Inventors: A Bidwell
Original assignee: Magno de Products Inc
Current assignee: Magno de Products Inc
Priority date: 1971-06-16
Filing date: 1973-01-22
Publication date: 1974-07-09
Anticipated expiration: 1991-07-09

Abstract

A new post is comprised of an elongated body of extruded aluminum having linear, uninterrupted surfaces and having an integral post portion of one cross-section and an integral driveblade portion of a different cross-section. The drive-blade portion includes a pair of integrally extruded drive blades extending outwardly in opposite directions from the body, and the integral connections of the drive blades to the body facilitate straight driving into the ground with a minimum of soil disturbance. The invention provides a one-piece barrier support post with integral drive blades which requires less maintenance than steel posts and has improved performance properties over two-piece aluminum or steel barrier post constructions.

Description

Bidwell 1 July 9,1974

[ ALUMINUM BARRIER SUPPORT POST [75] Inventor: Arthur W. Bidwell, Middletown,

Ohio I [73] Assignee: Magno de Products, Inc., Trenton,

Ohio

22 Filed: Jan. 22, 1973 21 1 Appl. No.: 325,408

Related US. Application Data [63] Continuation of Ser. No. 153,643, June 16, 1971.

[52] US. Cl. 256/l3.l, 52/153 [51] 'Int. Cl E01f 15/00 [58] Field of Search 256/131, 48, 47, l, 32, 256/34, 59, 65; 52/153, 154

[5 6] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 186,271 l/l877 Rickard 52/154 X 531,724 l/1895 Horn 52/153 X 1,444,641 2/1923 Rowe 256/48 1,709,732 4/1929 Mierkey... 52/154 1,915,535 6/1933 Johnson 7 52/153 2,008,794 7/1935 Obbard 52/153 2,181,703 11/1939 McCracken 256/l3.1 2,323,514 7/1943 Brickman 256/131 3,276,750 10/1966 DeRidder 256/131 Primary Examiner-Dennis L. Taylor Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Biebel, French 8L Bugg [57] ABSTRACT A new post is comprised of an elongated body of extruded aluminum having linear, uninterrupted surfaces and having an integral post portion of one crosssection and an integral drive-blade portion of a different cross-section. The drive-blade portion includes a pair of integrally extruded drive blades extending outwardly in opposite directions from the body, and the integral connections of the drive blades to the body facilitate straight driving into the ground with a minimum of soil disturbance. The invention provides a one-piece barrier support post with integral drive blades which requires less maintenancethan steel posts and has improved performance properties over two-piece aluminum or steel barrier post constructrons.

6 Claims, 9 Drawing Figures PATENTEDJIJL 919" SHEET 1 BF 2 FIG-4 FIG FIG2

//V VE/V TOR BDWELL W R U H T R A PATENTEDM 3.822.863

SHEET 2 BF 2 CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application is a continuation of U.S. Pat. application Ser. No. 153,643, filed June 16, 1971.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Barriers used along mediam strips and along the sides of highways generally include one or more horizontal guard rails supported by one or more vertical support posts. The support posts are usually constructed of steel or wood of various cross-sections, and the guard rails are generally bolted to surfaces of the posts after the posts have been anchored to the roadbed. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 2,181,703 of 1939.

Support posts constructed of steel have several disadvantages. First, they corrode and rust, and require frequent painting to maintain their structural integrity. Painting maintenance is notvonly costly but also dangerous because maintenance personnel must work in high-traffic areas. Also, to prevent rusting, steel posts are often galvanized with a coating of zinc, but this added step increases the cost of the overall structure, through both the initialcostof galvanizing and the maintenance costs which begin approximately years after environmental exposure. Because of the maintenance limitations of steel, aluminum support posts which do not rust offer substantial maintenance savings because they do not require painting.

To be effective, it is important that support posts be securely anchored to the ground so that they can resist displacement upon impact from errant automobiles. Otherwise, upon impact, the posts are apt to be pushed laterally through the soil thereby permitting excessive lateral movement of the rail under impact and permitting the errant vehicle to proceed into the area being protected by the barrier rail. Posts of the prior art have relied upon two-piece construction, bolted or welded connection to various underground or ground embedded supporting structures or alternatively to encasement in concrete to increase their ability to withstand lateral movement under impact. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 3,258,250 of 1960. i v

To eliminate painting maintenance and to eliminate encasement in expensive footers, it has been proposed in which apiece of steel is attached to the bottom of the posts with bolts, rivets, or some other protruding member. See U.S. Pat. Nos.v 1,964,404 of 1938 and 2,899,175 of 1959. Sheet steel has also been used for fence posts with anchor plates, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,401,978 of 1946. In each case, the anchor plates provide lateral stability and make it difficult to remove the posts from the ground.

It has been found, however, that steel or aluminum posts with bolted-on anchor plates have significant limitations. The bolts protrude and snag on rocks, making it difficult to drive the posts through soil and especially through asphalt. Once snagged, the bolts tend to shear off or come loose, causing driving angle deviations or distortion of the post. Oftenv the anchor plates come loose. In addition, the bolts may tear through the post 2 and cause weakness and post buckling. Similar problems are encountered with riveted assemblies.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention is directed to an improved aluminum support post for barrier rails or the like and to an improved method for making a barrier support post. In general, the barrier support post of the present invention is characterized by improved strength and resistance to deformation, and by integral drive blades which facilitate straight driving into the ground.

In accordance with the invention, a one-piece post and drive blade is comprised of an elongated body of extruded aluminum having linear, uninterrupted surfaces. The body has an integral post portion, preferably of an I-shaped cross-section, and an integral driveblade portion, having a T-shaped cross-section. The

drive-blade portion is preferably intermediately disposed along the body, and includes a pair of integrally extruded drive blades extending outwardly in opposite directions from the body. To facilitate straight driving into the ground with a minimum of soil disturbance, the post includes radiused portions at the integral connections of the drive blades to the body, and these portions provide a smooth transition from post portion to driveblade portion.

In the improved method, the barrier post is formed by extruding aluminum into an elongated length having a generally T-shaped cross-section with smooth, unbroken surfaces and with continuous integral flange segments extending outwardly in opposite directions from each other. The length is sectioned into barrier post lengths, long enough to extend above the ground a distance of about 20-30 inches, and to be driven into the ground a distance of about 3-5 feet. Once the lengths have been sectioned, symmetrically corresponding portions of the flange segments are removed, as by a shearing process, to form the integral drive blades on the support post and to produce a one-piece aluminum post and drive blade.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a partially cut away elevation showing a horizontal guide rail attached toa pair of vertical barrier support posts, and showing the drive blades of the support posts embedded in the ground below the road surfaces;

FIG. 2 is a partially broken away elevation of a support post constructed according to the present inven-' tion;

FIG. 3 is a side view of the support post of FIG. 2, and showing it embedded in the ground;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line 4 4 in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a second embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing the clean break line made in the earth by the drive blades and support post of the present invention;

FIG. 7 shows an elongated length of aluminum being extruded in the cross-section shown in FIG. 4, and

showing that the length may be severed into a plurality from the length extruded in FIG. 7, and showing that r a portion thereof is severable; and

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the post of FIG. 8, with the portion removed to provide a one-piece post with integral drive blades.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring to FIG. 1, a median barrier 10 for example includes a horizontal guard rail 11 mounted on two or more vertical support posts 12 embedded in a roadbed 13 of earth or asphalt-covered earth. The support posts 12 are commonly driven into the roadbed (sometimes through a layer of asphalt) by a special driving device (not shown), and the guard rail 11 is bolted or otherwise connected to the top portions of the posts 12.

In accordance with the invention, each post 12 is comprised of an extruded body 15 of aluminum (FIG. 2) having linear, uninterrupted outer surfaces and preferably in the form of an I-beam in which a central web 16 (FIG. 4) extends between a transverse front flange 17 and a transverse rear flange 18. The body 15 also includes a pair of integrally extruded drive blades 20 also having linear, uninterrupted outer surfaces. The body 15 essentially consists of an intermediate drive-blade portion disposed between an upper post portion 26 and a lower post portion 27, although the drive-blade portion 25 could as well be located at the lower end of the post. An I-beam construction is preferred because it is a strong construction and has reinforcing characteristics, although the invention is not limited to bodies with I"-shaped cross-sections.

The drive blades 20 extend outwardly in opposite directions from integral connections with the front flange 17. The drive blade portion 25 accordingly has a T- shaped cross-sectional configuration (FIG. 4), as contrasted with the I"-shaped cross-sectional configuration of the

post portions

26 and 27. The drive blades may have various shapes and configurations. In one embodiment, the drive blades 20 are smaller in thickness than the front flange 17 and are offset a short distance rearwardly of the forward face 28 (FIGS. l-4), while in another embodiment the drive blades 20 have the same thickness as the front flange 17 (FIG. 5).

The drive blades 20 are preferably generally rectangular, as shown, and are preferably integrally connected to the body 15 intermediate the ends thereof. Arcuate portions 30 integrally connect the drive blades 20 to the body 15, at least to the lower post portion 27 thereof. and the portions 30 provide a smooth and integrally arcuate transition from the port portion 27 to the drive-blade portion 25 which facilitates straight driving into the ground.

In a representative post 12 constructed according to the present invention, the flanges l7 and 18 would have a width of 2% inches and the web 16 a depth of 3-% inches. The post 12 would be approximately 55 inches in length, and the drive blades 20 would each have a width of about 2-% inches and a length of about 24 inches. The thickness of the drive blades 20, for example, would be 3/I6 5/16 inch.

Referring to FIGS. 6-8, an improved method of making a barrier support post comprises the step of extruding aluminum from an extruder into an extended length 41 having a T-shaped cross-section with smooth outer surfaces and with continuous integral flange segments 42 extending outwardly in opposite directions. The length 41 is then sectioned into barrier support post lengths 44 (FIG. 6), and then generally symmetrically corresponding

portions

45 and 46 are removed or sheared away (FIG. 7) to form integral drive blades 20 and to form an integrally extruded one-piece post and drive blade 12 (FIG. 9) with increased strength and smooth surfaces for facilitating straight driving into the ground with a minimum of soil disturbance.

From the foregoing description and accompanying drawing it is apparent that a barrier support and drive blade post constructed according to the present invention provides certain desirable features and advantages. For example, the support post 12, being constructed wholly of aluminum, provides significant painting maintenance savings over steel posts. In addition, the post 12 eliminates the need for a two-piece post and for the attendent bolting, riveting, or welding required to join two-piece posts. It also eliminates the potential weakness and tendency to buckle or bend which heretofore was encountered in bolted two-piece structures, when the protruding bolt heads snagged on rocks or the like. The integral structure also provides increased strength over welded two-piece posts which undergo annealing in welded areas.

Furthermore, with reference to FIG. 6, another desirable feature of the present invention is that the post provides a clean breakline at the surface of the roadbed 56 when it is driven into the ground or through asphalt. Because of the smooth outer surfaces and the arcuate transition from post to post-and'drive blade, the post 12 does not have protruding members which are apt to snag on rocks and cause drive-angle deviations. Rather, the post of the present invention drives into the ground straighter and with less soil disturbance than the posts of the prior art.

In addition, since many of these posts must be driven through asphalt, the smooth outer surfaces and the attendent clean break line facilitate refilling by the installing contractor. They provide smaller, cleaner breaks which are less costlyv to fill. Further, smooth breaks at the surface, when properly filled, serve to limit the possibility of water intrusion into the post holes, thereby reducing water and ice damage to the surrounding roadway.

While the method and form of apparatus herein described constitute preferred embodiments of the invention, it embodiments of the invention, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to this precise method and form of apparatus and that changes may be made therein without departing from the scope of the invention which is defined in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a barrier for use along automotive highways and on median strips, wherein the barrier is positioned along at least one side of the roadbed and includes generally horizontally disposed rails supported by support posts, wherein the posts are driven into the earth of the roadbed a distance sufficient to stabilize said barrier against accidental impact by vehicles travelling on said highways, the improvement comprising a unitary extruded all-aluminum barrier support post having an elongated body of extruded aluminum with linear, uninterrupted outer driving surfaces, said extruded body having an integral post portion of a cross-section in the shape of front and rear flanges with an integral connecting web and an integral drive-blade portion of a different cross-section, said drive-blade portion having a pair of drive blades extending outwardly in opposite directions, and said drive-blades being formed integrally on said post by extrusion and shearing to provide an extruded one-piece, high strength, unannealed post and sheared drive-blade having increased strength and linear, uninterrupted driving surfaces for facilitating straight driving into the ground with a minimum of soil disturbance.

2. The post of claim 1 wherein said integral connections comprise sheared arcuate portions which form an is located intermediate the ends of said post portion.

6. A unitary extruded all-aluminum barrier support post comprising an elongated body having upper-and lower post portions of an I-shaped cross-section and an intermediate drive-blade portion of a T" shaped cross-section, said body having linear, uninterrupted outer surfaces, said drive-blade portion being formed integrally on said post by extrusion and shearing, and

said drive-blade portion including a pair of integral drive blades extending outwardly in opposite directions from said body, the sheared shape of at least the lower portion of said drive blade, at the area where it joins the post, providing an arcuate smooth transition from said post-portion to said drive-blade portion to achieve a one-piece post and drive-blade with increased strength and smooth surfaces for facilitating straight driving into the ground with a minimum of soil disturbances.

w g UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No. 318221863 Dated July 9 I 1974 R Arthur W. Bidwell Inventor(s) It is certified that error appears in the above-identified patent and that said Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:

Col. 4, line 45, delete "it embodiments of the inventiori,".

Signed and sealed this 4th day of March 1975 (SEAL) Attest C. MARSHALL DANN RUTH C. MASON Commissioner of Patents Attesting Officer and Trademarks

Claims

1. In a barrier for use along automotive highways and on median strips, wherein the barrier is positioned along at least one side of the roadbed and includes generally horizontally disposed rails supported by support posts, wherein the posts are driven into the earth of the roadbed a distance sufficient to stabilize said barrier against accidental impact by vehicles travelling on said highways, the improvement comprising a unitary extruded allaluminum barrier support post having an elongated body of extruded aluminum with linear, uninterrupted outer driving surfaces, said extruded body having an integral post portion of a cross-section in the shape of front and rear flanges with an integral connecting web and an integral drive-blade portion of a different cross-section, said drive-blade portion having a pair of drive blades extending outwardly in opposite directions, and said drive-blades being formed integrally on said post by extrusion and shearing to provide an extruded one-piece, high strength, unannealed post and sheared drive-blade having increased strength and linear, uninterrupted driving surfaces for facilitating straight driving into the ground with a minimum of soil disturbance.

2. The post of claim 1 wherein said integral connections comprise sheared arcuate portions which form an arcuately smooth and integral transition from said post portion to said drive-blade portion to facilitate straight driving into the ground.

3. The post of claim 1 wherein said post portion has an ''''I''''-shaped cross-section, and said drive-blade portion has a ''''T''''-shaped cross-section.

4. The post of claim 1 wherein said body has a smooth forward face, sand said drive blades are offset rearwardly a short distance from said face.

5. The post of claim 1 in which said drive laid portion is located intermediate the ends of said post portion.

6. A unitary extruded all-aluminum barrier support post comprising an elongated body having upper and lower posT portions of an ''''I''''-shaped cross-section and an intermediate drive-blade portion of a ''''T''''-shaped cross-section, said body having linear, uninterrupted outer surfaces, said drive-blade portion being formed integrally on said post by extrusion and shearing, and said drive-blade portion including a pair of integral drive blades extending outwardly in opposite directions from said body, the sheared shape of at least the lower portion of said drive blade, at the area where it joins the post, providing an arcuate smooth transition from said post portion to said drive-blade portion to achieve a one-piece post and drive-blade with increased strength and smooth surfaces for facilitating straight driving into the ground with a minimum of soil disturbances.