FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[01] The present invention relates to a foundation for supporting equipment at a site. The present invention also relates to a foundation for supporting equipment at a trackside location

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[02] Typically, trackside equipment arranged alongside a rail track is mounted on a concrete foundation. However, the manufacture of concrete foundations is labour intensive, slow and therefore expensive. The manufacturing process for concrete foundations requires the transportation of extensive manufacturing equipment and materials to the track site, which is often remote and restricted. Concrete foundations are permanent and so have limited use because they cannot be re-sited in other locations. Concrete foundations are excessive, expensive and inconvenient for trackside equipment required for only a short period of time. Concrete foundations are typically bespoke for supporting a particular trackside equipment and do not have the versatility to support a range of different types of trackside equipment. The removal of concrete foundations requires significant work and creates waste. Concrete is an environmentally unfriendly material. Moreover, the manufacture of concrete foundations may lead to extended downtime of the rail track.

[03] The present invention seeks to address and ameliorate the above-mentioned problems associated with concrete foundations for supporting equipment, such as trackside equipment adjacent to a rail track. The invention seeks to provide an improved and alternative foundation for equipment. Embodiments of the invention seek to provide a foundation that may be constructed quickly, easily and cheaply. Embodiments of the invention seek to provide a foundation for permanent or temporary use. Embodiments of the invention seek to provide a foundation that is simple to dismantle and optionally re-site at another locations. Embodiments of the invention seek to provide a foundation that is suitable for supporting at least one equipment. Embodiment of the invention seek to provide a foundation that can support a variety of different types of equipment. Embodiments of the invention seek to provide a foundation that produces limited waste during construction or dismantling and is environmentally friendly. Embodiments of the invention seeks to provide a foundation which can be constructed or dismantled with limited or minimal disruption to the location.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[04] A first aspect of the invention provides a foundation to support trackside equipment at a trackside location adjacent to a rail track. The foundation comprises an enclosure having an outer supporting surface configured to support trackside equipment and an internal cavity configured to receive ballast.

[05] A second aspect of the invention provides a use of a foundation to support trackside equipment at a trackside location adjacent to a rail track, wherein the foundation comprises an enclosure having an outer supporting surface configured to support trackside equipment and an internal cavity configured to receive ballast.

[06] A third aspect of the invention provides a method of constructing a foundation to support trackside equipment at a trackside location adjacent to a rail track, the method comprising: providing an enclosure having an outer supporting surface and an internal cavity; arranging the enclosure at the trackside location; filling at least a portion of the internal cavity with ballast. [07] A fourth aspect of the invention provide a method of de-constructing a foundation arranged in- situ to support trackside equipment at a trackside location adjacent to a rail track, the foundation comprising an enclosure having an outer supporting surface to support trackside equipment and an internal cavity containing ballast, the method of de-construction comprising: extracting the ballast from the internal cavity of the enclosure; removing the enclosure from the trackside location.

[08] The foundation may support trackside equipment at a trackside location adjacent to any suitable type of rail track along which a rail vehicle can travel. The rail track may comprise one or more rails and be suitable for any type of rail vehicle, such as a passenger train, freight train, tram, maintenance vehicle and mono-rail train.

[09] The foundation may support any trackside equipment suitable for mounting at a location adjacent to a rail track. The trackside equipment may be any suitable equipment useful at the rail track site. The trackside equipment may be necessary for permanent/long-term use or temporary/short-term use at the trackside location. The trackside equipment may comprise means for controlling, monitoring or maintaining the rail track or vehicles operating on the rail track. The trackside equipment may comprise safety means for personnel working at the rail track site. The trackside equipment may comprise user means to aid personnel working at the rail track site. The trackside equipment may, for example, comprise signalling means, power generation and/or supply means, warning means or track vehicle monitoring means.

[10] The foundation may be a permanent foundation, permanently sited at a trackside location. Alternatively, due to the foundation having a loadable enclosure, the foundation may be a temporary foundation, temporarily sited at a trackside location. By extracting the ballast from the enclosure, the foundation may be easily removed and optionally re-sited at other trackside locations. The temporary foundation is advantageously suitable for trackside equipment having a short-term use. [11] The enclosure may comprise a housing with an internal cavity. The housing may be formed by a plurality of walls defining the internal cavity. Each wall may comprise a solid panel and/or a mesh. By way of example, the enclosure may have a cage structure comprising a framework with a plurality of mesh walls. A mesh wall may comprise wire interlaced to form a network. The housing comprises an inlet opening through which ballast may be loaded or unloaded from the internal cavity. The enclosure may comprise a closable door or lid to cover the inlet opening and thereby securely retain ballast in the internal cavity during use. Prior to loading with ballast, the enclosure is advantageously lightweight, easy to transport to and from the rail track site and arrange in place at the desired trackside location.

[12] The outer supporting surface may comprise a mounting plate secured to a wall of the housing. Alternatively, at least a portion of a wall of the housing may be configured to form the outer supporting surface for the trackside equipment. The outer supporting surface may be configured to support one or more items of trackside equipment. The outer supporting surface may be configured according to the type of trackside equipment. The outer supporting surface may be configured to support a variety of different types of trackside equipment. As a result, the foundation is multipurpose. The outer supporting surface may comprise coupling means to engage the trackside equipment. In an example, the outer supporting surface may comprise a mesh wall, whereby the trackside equipment is detachably fastened to the mesh using coupling means.

[13] In use, the enclosure may be configured to sit on the ground at the desired trackside location, substantially at ground level. Alternatively, the enclosure may be configured to be at least partially submerged in the ground at the desired location, below ground level. The enclosure may be configured for use at a trackside location with substantially even ground or substantially non-even ground.

[14] The ballast may comprise any material suitable for providing structural integrity and stability to the enclosure. The ballast may comprise material local to the rail track site. By local, it is meant that the ballast material is obtained at the site for use in the enclosure. The ballast may, for example, comprise material that has been moved at the rail track site in order to arrange the enclosure at the trackside location. As a result, only the enclosure needs to be brought to site and the waste produced when constructing the foundation is limited. The ballast may comprise rail track ballast gravel and/or ground materials from the rail track site. Alternatively or additionally, the ballast may comprise material brought to the rail track site that is substantially the same or similar to one or more material local to the rail track site.

[15] A fifth aspect of the invention provides a foundation to support equipment at a location on a site. The foundation comprises an enclosure having an outer supporting surface configured to support equipment and an internal cavity configured to receive ballast, preferably wherein the ballast comprises material local to the location.

[16] A sixth aspect of the invention provides a use of a foundation to support equipment at a location on a site, wherein the foundation comprises an enclosure having an outer supporting surface configured to support equipment and an internal cavity configured to receive ballast, preferably wherein the ballast comprises material local to the site.

[17] A seventh aspect of the invention provides a method of constructing a foundation to support equipment at a location on a site, the method comprising: providing an enclosure having an outer supporting surface and an internal cavity; arranging the enclosure at the location; filling at least a portion of the internal cavity with ballast, preferably wherein the ballast comprises material local to the site. [18] An eighth aspect of the invention provide a method of de-constructing a foundation arranged in-situ to support equipment at a location on a site, the foundation comprising an enclosure having an outer supporting surface to support equipment and an internal cavity containing ballast, the method of de-construction comprising: extracting the ballast from the internal cavity of the enclosure, preferably wherein the ballast comprises material local to the site; removing the enclosure from the location.

[19] The ballast comprises any material suitable for providing structural integrity and stability to the enclosure. The ballast preferably comprises material local to the site, that is; material obtained at the site. The ballast may comprise material that has been moved at the site in order to arrange the enclosure at the desired location. As a result, only the enclosure needs to be brought to site and the waste produced when constructing the foundation is limited. The ballast may comprise rocks, stones, gravel, soil, rubble, concrete, bricks, and ground materials.

[20] The foundation may support equipment at any desired location on a site where equipment is required. The site may be a transport, for example a road, footpath, railway or tramway. The site may be a construction site, demolition site or manufacturing site. The site may be a private or public building, or surrounding grounds. The site may be an agricultural site, such as a farm. The site may be a utility site, such as a power, water or gas site.

[21] The foundation may support any equipment useful at the site. The equipment may be necessary for permanent/long-term use or temporary/short-term use on the site. The equipment may comprise means for controlling, monitoring or maintaining the site. The equipment may comprise means for controlling, monitoring or maintaining vehicles operating on the site. For example, the site may be a road and the equipment may comprise traffic management equipment, such as traffic lights or signs. The equipment may comprise safety means for personnel working at the site. The equipment may comprise user means to aid personnel working at the site. The trackside equipment may, for example, comprise signalling means, power generation and/or supply means, warning means or vehicle monitoring means. The equipment may be trackside equipment.

[22] The foundation may be a permanent foundation, permanently sited at a location on a site. Alternatively, due to the foundation having a loadable enclosure, the foundation may be a temporary foundation, temporarily arranged at a location on a site. By extracting the ballast from the enclosure, the foundation may be easily removed and optionally re-sited at other locations. The temporary foundation is advantageously suitable for equipment having a short-term use.

[23] The enclosure may comprise a housing with an internal cavity. The housing may be formed by a plurality of walls defining the internal cavity. Each wall may comprise a solid panel and/or a mesh. By way of example, the enclosure may have a cage structure comprising a framework with a plurality of mesh walls. A mesh wall may comprise wire interlaced to form a network. The housing comprises an inlet opening through which ballast may be loaded or unloaded from the internal cavity. The enclosure may comprise a closable door or lid to cover the inlet opening and thereby securely retain ballast in the internal cavity during use. Prior to loading with ballast, the enclosure is advantageously lightweight, easy to transport to and from the site and arrange in place at the desired location.

[24] The outer supporting surface may comprise a mounting plate secured to a wall of the housing. Alternatively, at least a portion of a wall of the housing may be configured to form the outer supporting surface for the equipment. The outer supporting surface may be configured to support one or more items of equipment. The outer supporting surface may be configured according to the type of equipment. The outer supporting surface may be configured to support a variety of different types of equipment. As a result, the foundation is multi-purpose. The outer supporting surface may comprise coupling means to engage the equipment. In an example, the outer supporting surface may comprise a mesh wall, whereby the equipment is detachably fastened to the mesh using coupling means. [25] In use, the enclosure may be configured to sit on the ground at the desired location, substantially at ground level. Alternatively, the enclosure may be configured to be at least partially submerged in the ground at the desired location, below ground level. The enclosure may be configured for use at a location on a site with substantially even ground or substantially non-even ground.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[26] For a better understanding of the present invention and to show how it may be carried into effect, reference will now be made, by way of example only, to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[27] Figure 1 depicts an embodiment of a foundation according to the present invention; and

[28] Figure 2 depicts the embodiment of the foundation as shown in Figure 1 mounted in-situ adjacent to a rail track and supporting a solar panel.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENT(S)

[29] Figure 1 depicts an embodiment of a foundation (100) to support trackside equipment at a trackside location adjacent to a rail track.

[30] The foundation (100) comprises an enclosure (110). In this embodiment, the enclosure (110) is a cubiod-shaped cage formed from a framework of mesh walls (120). The enclosure is sufficiently light-weight to be transported easily and handled by a user at the rail track site.

[31] The enclosure (110) comprises an outer supporting surface (130) configured to support the trackside equipment. In this particular example, the outer supporting surface is formed by an upper mesh wall (120a) of the enclosure. [32] The outer supporting surface may support at least one trackside equipment and/or a variety of different types of trackside equipment. As shown in Figure 2, the outer supporting surface may support a solar panel (200).

[33] The framework of mesh walls defines an internal cavity (140) that is configured to receive ballast. Due to the ballast, the foundation has sufficient structural integrity and stability to provide a supporting effect to trackside equipment. A side wall (120b) of the enclosure comprises an inlet with a closable door (150) to allow for the loading and unloading of ballast from the internal cavity (140).

[34] Figure 2 depicts the foundation (100) mounted in-situ between a rail track (300) and an embankment (400). It can be seen that in this particular embodiment the enclosure sits at ground level. The enclosure is filled with ballast (160) comprising available and/or waste materials local to the rail track site, including rail track ballast gravel and ground materials. The foundation (100) supports a solar panel (200) for generating power to operate a rail vehicle sensing device (500). The solar panel is coupled to the upper mesh wall using releasable fastening means (not shown).

[35] To construct the foundation, the enclosure (110) is transported to site and placed at the desired trackside location adjacent to the rail track (300) for operating the rail vehicle sensing device (500). The enclosure is loaded with ballasting materials (160) sourced from the local environment, including rail track ballast gravel and ground materials. When sufficiently loaded with ballast, the solar panel (200) is clipped to the upper mesh wall (120a).

[36] When the vehicle sensing device (500) is no longer required, the solar panel (200) may be disconnected from the foundation (100). The foundation may also be deconstructed by extracting the ballast from the internal cavity of the enclosure to allow the enclosure to be easily removed from the trackside location. The foundation may be re-used at another trackside location by moving the enclosure and re-loading with ballast. [37] Although the invention has been described above with reference to one or more preferred embodiments, it will be appreciated that various changes or modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

[38] The enclosure may comprise any suitable shaped and sized housing formed from a plurality of walls defining the internal cavity. The walls may comprise solid panel and/or a mesh.

[39] The foundation may support any trackside equipment useful for the operation of the rail track or rail vehicles or for personnel at the rail track. The trackside equipment may comprise equipment for permanent use at the trackside location; equipment for temporary use at the trackside location; equipment for controlling, monitoring or maintaining the rail track; equipment for controlling, monitoring or maintaining vehicles operating on the rail track; warning equipment; personnel equipment; and/or equipment for generating and/or supplying power.

[40] The outer supporting surface may comprise a mounting plate secured to a wall of the housing. Alternatively, at least a portion of a wall may be configured to form the outer supporting surface. The trackside equipment is preferably detachably secured to the outer supporting surface using any suitable fastening means such as grips or clips.

[41] The foundation may be sited at ground level or at least partially submerged in the ground. In order to at least partially submerge the foundation, materials must be removed from the trackside location to form a hole sufficient to site the enclosure. These removed materials may comprise rail ballast gravel and/or soil. At least a portion of the removed materials may be used as ballast for the enclosure. As result, any waste is minimised. [42] Although the invention has been described in terms of the foundation supporting trackside equipment at a trackside location adjacent to a rail track, the foundation is not limited to supporting trackside equipment or being used at a trackside location adjacent to a rail track. The foundation can be used to support any kind of equipment at any kind of site, in which case the enclosure is filled with ballast which comprises material (such as rocks, stones, gravel, soil, rubble, concrete, or bricks) advantageously obtained from locally at the site). As a result, only the enclosure needs to be brought to the site and the waste produced when constructing the foundation is limited, aiding the rapid deployment of equipment, such as equipment required temporarily at a site.

[43] The foundation may be used to support traffic management equipment (such as traffic lights, speed cameras, warning signals, and signs) on a road (for example, during roadworks).

[44] The foundation could also be used to support equipment required by users at a remote worksite. For example, the foundation could support power generation equipment at a remote utility site, such as a water utility site.