GB2548773A

GB2548773A - A ground pile assembly

Info

Publication number: GB2548773A
Application number: GB1710975.2A
Authority: GB
Inventors: C Burden Trevor; Garbutt Justine
Original assignee: Francis and Lewis International Ltd
Current assignee: Francis and Lewis International Ltd
Priority date: 2013-07-18
Filing date: 2013-07-18
Publication date: 2017-09-27
Anticipated expiration: 2033-07-18
Also published as: GB201800808D0; GB201612457D0; GB2518135A; GB2555065B; GB2518135B; GB2548773B; GB2537074A; GB201312855D0; GB2537074B; GB2555065A; GB201710975D0

Abstract

A ground pile assembly comprising a first tubular pile section 10, a second tubular pile section 14 having at least one connection plate 16 fixed to the inside surface of the second pile section and arranged to be inserted within an end of the first pile section, and means 19 for securing the connection plate to the first pile section. Also disclosed is a pile cap comprising a cap plate for a ground pile. The cap plate has a fixing slot for connecting an attachable structure to the cap plate and a cap connection plate 28 which depends from the cap plate for connection to the end of the ground pile. Also disclosed is a ground pile position adapter comprising an elongate support beam having a pile attachment plate located at an end of the support beam arranged to be attached to an end of a ground pile at a first end and includes a first structure attachment means at the opposite end of the support beam.

Description

A Ground Pile Assembly

Elongate ground piles that are either driven or screwed into the ground are regularly used either individually or in combination with one or other ground piles, to support various structures such as railway or motorway sign posts or railway signals or equipment enclosure support frames. Such ground piles are typically used where at least the initial surface layer is not compact enough for other support structures to be utilised. To make it easier to handle the ground piles during transport and also during the process of driving the piles into the ground, the ground piles typically are provided in individual sections that are jointed together as the pile sections are driven or screwed into the ground. For smaller piles, for example of a diameter in the region of 120 mm, the individual pile sections are joined by a slightly larger sleeve into which either end of the two-bar section to be joined is inserted and bolts are passed straight through both the sleeve and the ends of the pile sections. This becomes impractical for larger diameter piles as the sleeves and bolts become too large to conveniently handle. It is also desirable to limit the amount of protrusion outside the cross section of the pile to reduce friction against the soil as the pile is driven into the ground and this becomes more critical with large diameter piles. An alternative that has been used for larger diameter piles, for example of approximately 600 20 mm diameter, involves cutting slots into the ends of the pile section, welding small tubes into these slots, and bolting vertically through the smaller tubes. However, this is relatively complicated to fabricate, as it requires a number of cutting and welding operations, and still has a significant protrusion outside the outer pile diameter.

In accordance with a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a ground pile assembly comprising a first tubular pile section, a second tubular pile section having at least one connection plate fixed to the inside surface of the second pile section and arranged to be inserted within an end of the first pile section, and means for securing the connection plate to the first pile section. Such a ground pile connection has the advantage of providing high strength with minimal protrusion outside the diameter of the tubular pile sections.

The first pile section preferably includes at least one access aperture arranged to be proximal to the connection plate when the connection plate is inserted within the first pile section. The access aperture facilitates the insertion of the securing means through the connection plate during assembly.

Additionally or alternatively, the securing means includes at least one bolt passing through the connection plate and the first pile section. Preferably, the bolts are round headed. Round headed bolts further reduce the protrusion of the connection assembly outside the pile diameter.

Additionally or alternatively, the second pile section may include a plurality of connection plates. The plurality of connection plates advantageously further increases the strength of the connection. Preferably, the connection plates are disposed equidistant to one another. This has the advantage of evenly distributing the connection forces between the tubular pile sections.

Additionally or alternatively, the or each connection plate conforms to the inner curvature of the second pile section. This further enhances the strength of the connection.

Additionally or alternatively, the outer diameters of the first and second pile sections are substantially the same. This further facilitates the easy driving of the pile assembly into the ground.

Additionally or alternatively, the second pile section includes a plurality of sets of bolt holes, each set of bolt holes extending around the circumference of the second pile section and being spaced apart from an adjacent set along the longitudinal axis of the second pile section. Each set of bolt holes preferably has an associated access aperture located adjacent to each respective set of bolt holes.

Additionally or alternatively, each set of bolt holes includes at least two parallel circumferential lines of bolt holes longitudinally spaced apart.

Additionally or alternatively, the pile assembly further comprises a pile cap including at least one cap connection plate arranged to be inserted within an end of the second pile section and including fixing means for fixing a structure to the pile cap. The pile cap fixing means preferably includes a number of fixing slots arranged to permit rotational adjustment relative to the pile cap of a structure fixed to the pile cap.

In accordance with a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of connecting two ground pile sections comprising, providing a first tubular pile section, providing a second tubular pile section having at least one connection cleat formed on the inner surface of the second pile section and having a portion extending beyond an end of the pile section, inserting the extending portion of the connection cleat into an open end of the first pile section, and securing the connection cleat to the first pile section.

Preferably, the connecting cleat is secured to the first pile section by one or more bolts. Preferably, the first pile section includes at least one access aperture through which the bolts are manipulated.

Embodiments of the present invention are described below, by way of non-limiting examples only, with reference to the accompanying figures, of which;

Figure 1 schematically illustrates an embodiment of a ground pile assembly according to an embodiment of the first aspect of the present invention;

Figure 2 shows another embodiment of the pile assembly including a pile cap;

Figure 3 shows a detail plan view of the pile cap shown in Figure 3; and

Figure 4 shows a position adaptor for use with the ground pile assembly shown in Figures 1 - 3.

Figure 1 schematically illustrates an embodiment of a ground pile assembly comprising a first and second tubular pile section. The first tubular pile section 10 has a number of bolt holes 12 formed through its side walls towards an end of the pile section. A second tubular pile section 14 includes one or more connection plates 16 or connection cleats, formed on the inner surface of the pile section 14. In preferred embodiments the connection plates 16 are welded to the interior surface of the pile section 14, but other suitable connection means may be utilised, or the connection plates may be formed integral with the second tubular pile section 14. Each connection plate 16 has a portion 18 that protrudes outside the main body of the second tubular pile section. The protruding portion 18 of each connection plate 16 has a corresponding number of bolt holes 19 to those formed in the first tubular pile section 10. The connection plates 16 are orientated such that they can be inserted into the end of the first tubular pile section 10 and one or more securing bolts fastened through the bolt holes 12, 19 in the first and second tubular pile sections 10, 14 to 15 form a high strength connection between the two pile sections 10, 14.

In the embodiment illustrated in figure 1, both the first and second pile sections 10, 14 include access apertures 20 formed in the side walls of the pile sections proximal to the connection plates 16. The access apertures 20 allow the connection bolts to more easily be inserted through the bolt holes 12, 19 in the respective pile sections when connecting the two pile sections together. In further embodiments, only one of the first and second pile sections may have access apertures 20 formed therein. Furthermore, the access apertures 20 may not be required at all, depending on the length of the individual pile sections and their respective diameters, as other means may be utilised to insert the connecting bolts.

In the embodiment illustrated, the second pile section 14 has at its opposite end the same bolt holes as the first pile section 10, thus allowing a further, third pile section to be attached to the ground pile assembly, as required. A further embodiment is shown in Figure 2, with like parts to those described with reference to Figure 1 having like reference numbers. In the further embodiment shown in Figure 2, the second pile section 14 has three sets of bolt holes 22a, 22b, 22c spaced along the length of the pile section from the end of the pile section opposite the connection plates 16. Each set of bolt holes has at least one access aperture 20 associated with it. The provision of multiple sets of bolt holes and associated access apertures provides flexibility of use of the pile sections. In particular, in the event of the pile assembly having to be stopped at a shallower depth than planned for during insertion into the ground, for example because of encountering hard ground, then the second (uppermost) pile section can be physically cut short such that an appropriate one of the sets of bolt holes can be used for subsequently securing any desired structure to.

It is envisaged that in most embodiments only the final pile section of the pile assembly will have the multiple sets of bolt holes and associated access apertures (to reduce manufacturing cost and complexity). However, in other embodiments all pile sections will include these features.

Also shown in Figure 2 is a pile cap 24 arranged to be attached to the top of the final pile section and provide a mounting point for subsequently attaching structures, such as a sign post for example. The pile cap 24 shown in Figure 2 has a cap plate 26 that extends substantially across the open end of the final pile section 14 when the pile cap is attached to the pile section. As illustrated, the cap plate 26 is circular, with substantially the same or larger diameter than the pile sections. However, in other embodiments the cap plate 26 may be other shapes, such as square or hexagonal, as desired. A number of cap connection plates 28 extend from the cap plate 26 in an analogous manner to connection cleats 16 of the pile sections. The cap connection plates 28 are this arranged to be inserted into the open end of the upper pile section 14 and be attached to the pile section using the bolt holes 12, 22. The cap plate 26 of the pile cap includes a number of structure fixing slots 30 (as shown in Figure 3) to which the desired subsequent structure can be attached.

In the embodiment illustrated eight curved slots are provided to allow for rotational adjustment of the structure placement relative to the pile. This advantageously accommodates any rotational variance in the planned position of the pile. The number of slots 30 or holes can vary in accordance with the desired degree of rotational adjustment. In the embodiment illustrated in Figure 2, each set of bolt holes 22 is formed of two parallel lines of holes, the circumferential lines of holes being longitudinally spaced apart. This allows the pile cap 24 to be fixed to the upper pile section 14 at two different levels to suit different level requirements. It will be appreciated that each set of bolt holes 22 may have more than two lines of holes, in which case the length of the cap connection plates 28 will differ accordingly. Alternatively or additionally, multiple lines of bolt holes can be provided on the cap connection plates 28 to achieve the same adjustability in cap level.

Figure 4 shows a position adapter 32 secured to a pile cap 24 as discussed above and an upper pile section 14. The position adapted 32 includes a pile attachment plate 34 arranged to be bolted, or otherwise secured, to the pile cap 24. A support beam 36 extends from the pile attachment plate 34 in a direction radial to the longitudinal axis of the pile section 14. The support beam has at least one set of structure attachment features (not shown), such as bolt holes, located towards the opposite end of the support beam from the pile attachment plate and arranged to receive a desired structure 38 (partially shown in Figure 4). The position adaptor enables the desired structure 38 to be offset relative to the ground pile. This is advantageous where physical constraints prevent the ground pile from being positioned axially to the desired location of the structure. For example, gas or electricity supplies may be located below the desired surface level location of the structure. The support beam 36 can have multiple attachment features formed along its length, thus providing flexibility in the slots 30 of the pile end cap 24 also provide rotational flexibility in positioning the adaptor 32 as previously described.

In other embodiments, the connection plate 16 may be secured to the first pile section 10 by means other than bolts. For example, depending upon the dimensions of the pile sections 10, 14 connection plates may be welded to the interior surface of the first pile section 10 after the second pile section 14 has been inserted into the first pile section 10. In other embodiments, here the pile sections are formed from non-metallic materials, such as fibre reinforced composites or other plastic materials, the connection plate 16 may be secured to the first pile section 10 by suitable adhesives.

In the particular embodiment illustrated in figure 1, the second pile section 14 has a number of connection plates 16 provided. However, the number of connection plates may be varied as required depending upon the physical dimensions of the pile sections and the particular connection strength desired. For example, it would be possible for the second pile section to be provided with a single connection plate, although it is more preferable for a plurality of connection plates to be provided. Where a number of connection plates are provided, then it is preferable for the individual connection plates to be spaced equidistant to one another about the circumference of the second pile section 14. This provides an even distribution of the forces subsequently applied through the connection plates 16 during further driving processes. It is also preferred for each connection plate 16 to conform to the inner surface curvature of the second pile section 14. However, depending upon the relative dimensions of the pile section and the connection plates themselves, it may be acceptable to provide each connection plates as a planer element.

It is preferred for the external diameters of the first and second pile sections 10, 14 to be substantially the same, such that when connected they present a continuous external surface, thus minimising the friction against the soil as the pile is driven into the ground. However, depending on the intended application, further embodiments may be provided in which the connection plates 16 simply extend from the end of the second pile section 14 flush with the exterior surface of the pile section 14, thus forming a continuous extension of the pile section. In such embodiments, a portion of the first pile section 10 would be stepped such that the interior diameter of the stepped portion substantially matches the external diameter of the second pile section 14 and connecting plates 16 and such that the end of the second pile section 14 could be inserted into the stepped portion of the first pile section 10. However, this is less advantageous as the stepped portion would have a larger external diameter and present an increase in friction during piling operations.

Claims

1. A ground pile assembly comprising a first tubular pile section, a second tubular pile section having at least one connection plate fixed to the inside surface of the second pile section and arranged to be inserted within an end of the first pile section, and means for securing the connection plate to the first pile section.

2. A ground pile assembly according to claim 1, wherein the first pile section includes at least one access aperture arranged to be a proximal to the connection plate when the connection plate is inserted within the first pile section.

3. A ground pile assembly according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the securing means includes at least one bolt passing through the connection plate on the first pile section.

4. A ground pile assembly according to claim 3, wherein the bolts are round headed.

5. A ground pile assembly according to any preceding claim, wherein the second pile section includes a plurality of connection plates.

6. A ground pile assembly according to claim 5, wherein the connection plates are disposed equidistant to one another.

7. A ground pile assembly according to any preceding claim, wherein the or each connection plate conforms to the inner curvature of the second pile section.

8. A ground pile assembly according to any preceding claim, wherein the outer diameters of the first and second pile sections are substantially the same.

9. A ground pile assembly according to any preceding claim, wherein the second pile section includes a plurality of sets of bolt holes, each set of bolt holes extending around the circumference of the second pile section and being spaced apart from an adjacent set along the longitudinal axis of the second pile section.

10. A ground pile assembly according to claim 9, wherein each set of bolt holes has an associated access aperture located adjacent to each respective set of bolt holes.

11. A ground pile assembly according to claim 9 or 10, wherein each set of bolt holes includes at least two parallel circumferential lines of bolt holes longitudinally spaced apart.

12. A ground pile assembly according to any one of claims 9 to 11, further comprising a pile cap including at least one cap connection plate arranged to be inserted within an end of the second pile section and including fixing means for fixing a structure to the pile cap.

13. A ground pile assembly according to claim 12, wherein the pile cap fixing means includes a number of fixing slots arranged to permit rotational adjustment relative to the pile cap of a structure fixed to the pile cap.

14. A method of connecting two ground pile sections comprising: providing a first tubular pile section; providing a second tubular pile section having at least one connection cleat formed on the inner surface of the second pile section and having a portion extending beyond an end of the pile sections; inserting the extended portion of the connecting cleat into an open end of the first pile section; securing the connecting cleat to the first pile section.

15. A method of claim 14, wherein the connecting cleat is secured to the first pile section by one or more bolts.

16. A method of claim 15, wherein the first pile section includes at least one access aperture through which said bolts are manipulated.