Colicchia, Riccardo (Via Turanense Km. 800 Belmonte in Sabina, I-020020, IT)
Nucci, Giuseppe (Via Severano, 35 Roma, I-00162, IT)
Colicchia, Riccardo (Via Turanense Km. 800 Belmonte in Sabina, I-020020, IT)
| 1. | Light tower provided with base radio station for movable telephony, light tower of the type having a shaft (1), equipped, in its lower portion, with a housing compartment (2) accessible through an opening (30) for the passage of an operator's arm or torso, and, in its summit portion, with a head (4) covered by a dome (5) and provided with lighting bodies (7) powered through cables passing within the shaft (1) and sustained by a support crown (8) surrounding said shaft (1), possibly movable by means of a lifting system provided in said housing compartment (2), characterised in that it comprises a transmission and power supply unit (14) positioned in said housing compartment (2) of said shaft, and a system of antennas (15) fastened on said shaft (1) in said summit portion below said head (4); said transmission and power supply unit (14) being connected to said antenna system (15) by means of data transmission cables (16) located within said shaft (1). |
| 2. | Light tower as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that said antenna system (15) includes at least an antenna fastened by means of brackets (17) to a pair of collar plates (18) to be removably secured to the shaft (1). |
| 3. | Light tower as claimed in claim 2, characterised in that the inclination of said brackets (17) can be adjusted. |
| 4. | Light tower as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that said antenna system (15) is secured in position by means of at least a steel cable (19), passing within the shaft (1) and anchored to the shaft (1) in said housing compartment. |
| 5. | Light tower as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that said antenna system (15) is covered circumferentially to the shaft (1) by a protective case (20), made in a material that is permeable to electromagnetic radiation and removably connected to said shaft (1) by means of at least a planar plate (21). |
| 6. | Light tower as claimed in claim 5, characterised in that said protective case (20) is formed by a single shell. |
| 7. | Light tower as claimed in claim 5, characterised in that said protective case (20) is formed by at least two shell portions. |
| 8. | Light tower as claimed in claim 5, characterised in that said protective case (20) has cylindrical lateral shape. |
| 9. | Light tower as claimed in claim 5, characterised in that said protective case (20) has prismatic lateral shape. |
| 10. | Light tower as claimed in claim 5, characterised in that said protective case (20) is superiorly fastened removably to a driving head (11) integral with the shaft (1) inside said dome (5). |
| 11. | Light tower as claimed in claim 5, characterised in that said protective case (20) is made of fibreglassreinforced plastic. |
| 12. | Light tower as claimed in claim 5, characterised in that the outer diameter (d) of said protective case (20) is lesser than the inner diameter (D) of a support crown (8) surrounding said shaft (19) bearing the lighting bodies (7), movable coaxially along the shaft (1) by means of cables (44) through a system for raising and lowering the support crown (8) provided in said housing compartment (2). |
| 13. | Light tower as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that said housing compartment (2), housing said transmission and power supply unit (14), is obtained by means of an enlargement (22) of the lower portion of the shaft (1). |
| 14. | A light tower as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that said housing compartment (2), housing said transmission and power supply unit (14) is provided with at least an aerating opening (23) for a climate control system of the housing compartment (2). |
The terms"light-bearing tower","light tower", or simply"tower"mean light posts, having a shaft of considerable height, in excess of 15 meters, bearing a certain number of floodlights in proximity to its summit.
Background Art A serious technical development on lighting towers became widespread in Europe since the early Sixties, i. e. when it was understood that a solution with multiple light posts with modest height leads to a confused lay-out thereof and a possible hazard for motorists.
With the continuous evolution of lamps and the improvement in the design of lighting fixtures, an exterior lighting system using more powerful light sources on light towers is strongly advisable.
Current light towers, up to fifty meters high, are generally equipped with a so- called movable crown supporting the lights or floodlights, which surrounds the shaft and is generally susceptible to be raised up to a stable position inside a dome and lowered to a position in proximity to the base of the shaft, accessible for maintenance, by means of a related actuation system.
Light towers are become more and more widespread thanks to the unquestionable advantages achieved for the improvement of night visibility and to their more than acceptable fit in the environmental décor, especially in very spread- out areas such as road crossings, motorway entrances and exits, car parks, city centres, container yards, ports, airports, motorway service areas, industrial areas,
sports complexes, shopping malls, railway yards, and in many more areas besides.
Disclosure of Invention Having acknowledged the development and interest, both in logistical and environmental terms, of light towers, the present invention aims to meet the ever- more pressing need to rectify the current indiscriminate proliferation of base radio stations for mobile telephony, considering the technological advances of transmission apparatuses and the need to place the radiating system in conditions of maximum visibility, but at the same time to position them in such a way as to cause the minimum possible nuisance in relation to current dispositions regulating admissible levels of electromagnetic field intensity.
Hence, light towers which are tall and positioned in open areas, with an ample band of visibility, become ideal solutions to problems existing in the field of telecommunications, in particular for the installation of base radio stations for mobile telephony.
The aims of the present invention therefore are to allow the installation of base radio stations with a reduced environmental impact, in an aesthetically acceptable and functionally advantageous combination with the tower structure, which are thus inexpensive to install and easy to access and maintain, compared to current installations.
The invention, as it is characterised by the claims that follow, solves the problem of providing a light tower provided with base ratio station for mobile telephony, light tower of the type having a shaft, provided, in its lower portion, with a housing compartment accessible through an opening for the passage of an operator's arm or torso, and, in its summit portion, with a head covered by a dome and equipped with lighting bodies powered through cables passing inside the shaft and sustained by a supporting crown surrounding said shaft, crown may be movable by means of a lifting system provided in said housing compartment, which, from a general point of view, is characterised in that it comprises a transmission and power
supply unit located in said housing compartment of said shaft, and a system of antennas fastened on said shaft in said summit portion underneath said head; said transmission and power supply unit being connected to said antenna system by means of data transmission cables positioned inside said shaft.
The base radio station according to the invention can be installed on all types of light towers, provided or otherwise with an actuation system for the movable crown supporting lighting bodies, but by way of example, purely for purposes of its complete representation, the accompanying drawings show it applied to a type of light tower that is owned and manufactured by ILVA Pali Dalmine-IPD s. r. l.
Naturally, the characteristics of form and functional technology of the known light tower fall outside the scope of the present invention.
Description of the Drawings Further features and advantages of the invention shall become more readily apparent from the detailed description that follows of a preferred embodiment, illustrated purely by way of non limiting indication in the accompanying drawings, in which: -Figure 1 shows a schematic front view of a first light tower according to the present invention; -Figure 2 shows a schematic front view of a second light tower according to the present invention; -Figure 3 shows a schematic front view of a third light tower according to the present invention; -Figure 4 shows a schematic section of a lighting head of the second light tower shown in Figure 2; -Figure 5 schematically shows a section obtained according to the line A-A of Figure 4; and -Figure 6 shows a partial schematic front view of the base of the light tower of Figure 3.
Description of the Illustrative Embodiment With reference to Figures 1 through 3, a light tower in the respective embodiments (with different heights, respectively for instance 20,25 and 30 metres) comprises a conical shaft 1 with circular or polygonal cross section, a housing compartment 2 on the base section 3 of the shaft and a lighting table at the summit of the shaft.
The shaft 1 normally consists of multiple cone frustums, preferably with polygonal cross section, mutually joined by means of overlapping fixed joints.
The base section 3 of the tower can be provided either with a base plate to be mounted on a cement foundation plinth with the aid of coach screws, or with a part of the shaft itself housed directly in the foundation plinth (not shown herein). The housing compartment 2 provided on the base section has an access opening 30 for a person's arm or torso. The opening 30 allows access to the means for supplying power to the lighting bodies and the system 31 for lifting them in the light tower, shown by way of example in Figure 2.
With reference also to Figure 4, the shaft 1 bears, in its summit portion, the lighting head 4 covered by a dome 5 terminating with a mast 6. The lighting head 4 is provided with lighting bodies 7 powered through cables (not shown) passing inside the shaft 1 and sustained by a support crown 8 surrounding the shaft 1, complete with brackets 9 for fastening the floodlights or lighting bodies 7 and the related accessories.
The crown 8 for supporting lighting bodies, shown in greater detail, in its rest position, in Figure 4, is shown schematically moving according to the direction of an arrow F in Figure 2. In the resting condition the support crown 8 is held by means of its pivot pins 10 within elastic seats 100 for holding it to a fixed driving head 11, containing transmission organs for lifting ropes and electrical cables 44 (Figure 2).
The crown 8 is movable by means of a lifting system provided in the housing compartment 2, substantially a winch, able to be activated for instance by means of
a carriage-mounted actuating unit 12 (Figure 2). The carriage-mounted actuating unit 12, activated with a pushbutton panel 13 and engaged on the actuation system, allows to raise and lower the movable crown to maintain and replace lighting bodies.
The light tower, as shown in Figure 1, could have a fixed support crown and, in this case, the maintenance of the head and replacement of lighting bodies should be conducted by means of ladders or aerial platforms.
According to the present invention, the light tower is provided with a base radio station, comprising a transmission and power supply unit 14 (not shown in greater detail because it is of a well known type), positioned in the housing compartment 2 in the base portion of the shaft, powered through the same means supplying power to the lighting bodies, and a radiating or antenna systems fastened on the shaft 1 in the summit portion below the head 4, globally indicated as 15. The transmission and power supply unit is connected to the antenna system by means of data transmission cables 16 passing through a slot 43 on the shaft 1 and positioned therein (Figure 4).
The antenna system 15 includes at least an antenna (three antennas are shown in Figures 4 and 5) fastened by means of brackets 17 to a pair of collar plates 18 to be removably secured to the shaft 1. The inclination of the brackets 17 can be adjusted in a known manner.
The antenna system 15 is secured in its position by means of at least a steel cable 19, also passing through the slot 43 inside the shaft 1 and anchored to the shaft in the housing compartment 2. This safety anchoring is also useful in case of removal of the antennas.
As shown in the figures, the antenna system is covered, circumferentially to the shaft 1, by a protective case, made of a material that is permeable to electromagnetic radiation and removably connected to the shaft 1 by means of at least a planar plate 21 (Figure 4). The protective case 20 can be formed by a single shell or by at least two shell portions. It can have a cylindrical or prismatic lateral shape, and be tapered downwards toward the shaft and said planar plate 21 in the portion 210.
As shown in Figure 4, the protective case 20 is also advantageously superiorly
fastened removably to a structure that is integral with the shaft 1 inside the dome 5 by means of a second planar plate 211. The protective case 20 can advantageously be made of fibreglass-reinforced plastic.
Conveniently, according to the present invention the outer diameter (d) of the protective case 20 is lesser than the inner diameter (D) of the movable support crown 8 (Figure 4). When the light tower has a movable crown, the lowering and raising of the movable crown must not be prevented for normal operations to maintain, repair or replace lighting bodies from a protective case of such dimensions as to hinder the vertical run of the movable crown.
Since the introduction of the transmission and power supply unit 14 reduces the space available to operate inside the housing compartment both on normal devices equipping the light tower and on those with which the light tower is fitted according to the present invention, it is convenient, to work in a"comfortable"way, to provide for an enlargement of the lower portion of the shaft 1 in the housing department 2 housing the transmission and power supply unit 14. The most frequent servicing operations on the unit 14 pertain to its connection with an external portable computer through which the operating data can be obtained and corrections or modifications to the relating programs can be implemented. This housing compartment 2, affected by an enlargement 22, is shown by way of example in Figures 3 and 6. Moreover, due to problems linked to the heat produced by the same unit 14 in its operation, aerating slots 23 are obtained in the access opening 30 of the housing compartment 2 and in other parts of the same shaft, but possibly also in the walls of the housing compartment 2 of a light tower with fixed crown, for an adequate air circulation and climate control of the housing compartment 2.
As shown, the antenna system 15 is provided fixed, i. e. not capable of being lowered for maintenance, like the floodlight support crown.
This choice is dictated by the fact that the antenna system requires servicing only rarely and, should an intervention be necessary, normal lifting means, such as ladders and aerial carriages would be used by technicians to approach it.
Naturally, the invention thus conceived can be subject to numerous modifications and variations, without thereby departing from the scope of the inventive concept.