The present invention relates to a method of fixing a column substantially vertically on a founda¬ tion, bolt means being attached in such a way to the column that they extend outwardly from one of the end surfaces thereof.

Present-day methods of fixing a column on a foun¬ dation are, for economic and/or technical reasons, only applicable either to concrete columns or to steel columns, which among other things is disadvantageous to the manufacture of the column.

Three different prior art fixing methods will be described below, reference being had to Figs 1-3. Fig. 1 illustrates a steel column 1 which is provided with a base plate 2 and is fixed on a founda- tion 3 having a large central hole 4. In this known fixing meth - od, a so-called bolt cage 5 comprising for example four bolts joined by rods, is first fixed by casting concrete into the hole of the foundation which has been positioned at the intended place, where- upon the steel column 1 is mounted on the foundation 3 in such a way that the bolts of the latter are in¬ serted in through holes 6 in the base plate 2 of the steel column. The bolts are then secured to the base plate by nuts 7. Finally, the gap between the column and the foundation is filled with concrete, and a surrounding layer of concrete is cast around the lower end of the column 1 to prevent corrosion. This fixing method implies therefore on the one hand that an exten¬ sive casting operation must be carried out at the building site proper to fill the hole of the foundation, which means longer building times, and on the other hand that a bolt cage is required, leading to increased building costs.

Fig. 2 illustrates a concrete column 11 provided with a bolt foot 12 and fixed, on a foundation 13 by means of a number of bolts 15 set in concrete. In this known fixing method, the foundation is provided with bolts before it is mounted at the intended place. This means that the concrete column 11 cannot be fixed in an exact vertical position on the foundation unless the latter has been carefully and accurately adjusted before the mounting. For mounting the concrete column on the foundation, the bolts of the latter are inserted in through holes in a plate 16 attached at the lower end of the column by means of anchoring rods 18. The bolts are then fastened to the plate 16 by means of nuts 17. Finally, the gap between the column and the foundation is filled with concrete, and at the same time a surrounding layer of concrete is cast around the bolt foot proper in order to prevent corrosion of the bolts 15. The reason why a bolt cage is not normally used for concrete columns having a bolt foot is that it is too expensive to use both a bolt cage and a bolt foot.

Fig. 3, finally, illustrates a concrete column 21 which has been fixed on a foundation 23 with a large, central hole 24. In this known fixing method the concrete column is fixed by casting in the hole of the foundation. Vertical and lateral adjustment of the concrete column 21 is achieved by insertion of adjusting washers 25 and wedges 26 in the hole of the foundation 23. It is therefore rather diffi- cult to obtain a correct adjustment of the column by this method.

As has been described above-, different fixing methods and different foundations are utilised for fixing a concrete column and a steel column. In the two cases where fixing bolts are used, these are first fixed in the foundation and then in holes in the co¬ lumn. This means that the column can be fixed on the

foundation in one single position only. If the founda¬ tion is inclined, the column will therefore be in¬ clined as well. Consequently, the adjustment of the foundation when mounting the same must be done with great precision. Furthermore, it is of course essential that the holes in the column and the bolts in the foundation are mutually correctly placed.

The object of the present invention is to provide a simple and inexpensive method of fixing a column substantially vertically on a foundation, which method makes it possible to use the same type of foundation for concrete columns as well as for steel columns, and does not require an exact adjustment of the founda¬ tion to enable the column to be fixed substantially vertically thereon.

The object is achieved by a method of the type defined above, characterised according to the present invention in that a first nut means is disposed on each bolt means; that the column is disposed on the foundation in which there has been provided, for each bolt means, a cavity designed to accommodate the respec¬ tive bolt means with a lateral allowance and opening into an access opening provided in the foundation; and that, when the column is being disposed on the foundation, each nut means is placed on the foundation and each bolt means is inserted into the access opening via the associated cavity, whereafter second nut means are disposed on the bolt means via the respective access opening for clamping the column, after adjustment thereof by means of the first nut means, to the founda¬ tion in cooperation with said first nut means.

The column is either a steel column, in which case each bolt means can be fixed in a hole in a plate attached to one end of the column, or a concrete column, in which case each bolt means can be cast into the column during manufacture thereof.

The invention will now be described in more detail, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

Fig. 1 is a sectional view showing a steel column that has been fixed on a foundation according to a known fixing method.

Fig. 2 is a sectional view showing a concrete column that has been fixed on a foundation according to a known fixing method.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view showing a concrete column that has been fixed on a foundation according to a known fixing method.

Fig. 4 is a sectional view showing a steel column that has been fixed on a foundation according to the method of the present invention. Fig. 5 is a sectional view showing a concrete column that has been fixed on a foundation according to the method of the present invention.

Fig. 6 shows the foundation of Figs. 4 and 5 from above. Fig. 4 illustrates a steel column 31 with a base plate 32 which is attached to the lower end of the column and dimensioned to project a distance beyond the lateral surfaces of the column. The base plate has a number of through holes 36, normally four,- which are provided in the corner regions of the base plate portion projecting beyond the lateral surfaces of the column 31.

In this Figure, there is shown a foundation 33 having the same number of vertical cavities 38 as there are holes in the base plate of the column 31, in this embodiment four cavities. These cavities open, as is seen from Fig. 6, into two horizontal cavities 39 which in turn open into the external surfaces of the foundation. When the column 31 is to be erected on the foun¬ dation 33 previously positioned at the intended place, a threaded bolt 35 is first fixed in each hole 36

in the base plate 32 of the column 31 by means of two nuts 37. These nuts are, as is seen from Fig. 4, placed on both sides of the base plate. The bolts which have been fixed in such a manner in the base plate that they extend downwardly from the lower end of the co¬ lumn, are then provided each with one washer 40 and one nut 41 screwed on from below to the correct vertical position with regard to the desired position of the column 31 relative to the foundation 33. When the column then is disposed on the foundation, the bolts 35 are inserted into the horizontal cavities 39 via the vertical cavities 38.

A washer 42 and a nut 43 are then disposed on each bolt via the horizontal cavities and tightened to adjust the column in the desired vertical and la¬ teral positions, and at the same time the nuts 41 located above the foundation are tightened as well, whereby the column is fixed in a stable manner on the foundation. Due to the fact that the vertical cavities 38, as is seen from Fig. 4, are larger than the bolts 35, there is no need for such an accurate adjustment of the foundation prior to its mounting at the intended place as is required in the known fixing methods for making it possible to fix the column vertically on the foundation. This is because a minor inclination of the foundation can be counteracted by inclining the bolts when the column is mounted on the foundation. This leads among other things to a more rapid mounting of the foundation by the method of the present invention than by the known fixing methods referred to above.

Finally, after the column has been adjusted and fixed, the vertical and horizontal cavities are sealed by casting, and the gap between the column and the foundation is filled with concrete.

Fig. 5 illustrates a concrete column 51 having a number of threaded bolts 55, normally four, which

are cast into a concrete column during the manufac¬ ture thereof, such that they project downwardly from the lower end surface of the column. These bolts are placed in the corner regions of the column. In this Figure there is also shown a foundation 33 which is the equivalent of the foundation shown in Fig. 4 and of which therefore no detailed description is given. The number of vertical cavities 38 in the foundation 33 here corresponds to the number of bolts in the concrete column.

When the column 51 is to be erected on the founda¬ tion 33 previously positioned at the intended place, the projecting bolts are first provided each with one washer 40 and one nut 41 screwed on from below to the correct vertical position with regard to the desired position of the column 51 relative to the foundation. Then the concrete column 51 is disposed on the foundation in such a manner that the bolts 55 are inserted into the horizontal cavities 39 via the vertical cavities 38, whereupon the concrete column is adjusted and fixed on the foundation in the same way as the steel column.

It should be mentioned that the foundation used in the method according to the present invention re- quires no cast-in steel details, which means that it can be manufactured at a lower cost than the founda¬ tion used in the known fixing methods. Because the concrete column used in the method according to the present invention requires no concrete footing around its lower end, as is the case for the concrete column in Fig. 2, the building time and the extent of the subsequent concreting work will be reduced.

It will be appreciated that the invention is not limited to the embodiment described above and il- lustrated in the drawings, but can be modified in dif¬ ferent ways within the scope of the appended claims.

For example, the bolts 35 of the steel column 31 can be provided with bolt heads instead of the nuts 37 located above the base plate 32.