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Title:
REINFORCED SUPPORT FOR BUILDING APPLICATIONS AND METHOD OF FORMING SUCH REINFORCED SUPPORT
Document Type and Number:
WIPO Patent Application WO/2018/215905
Kind Code:
A1
Abstract:
A reinforced support (1) for building applications comprising an outer tubular element (4) defining a longitudinal axis (L) and having a lower transverse plate (5) at a longitudinal end (2), for contact with a floor or a load-bearing structure and an inner tubular element (6), which is telescopically housed in the outer tubular element (4) along the longitudinal axis (K) and has an upper transverse plate (8) designed to contact a ceiling or a structure to be supported. The outer tubular element (4) comprises a substantially cylindrical side wall (13), which is divided into a substantially smooth upper portion (14) and a lower portion (15) having unevenness (16) for defining a reinforcement area (17) and for imparting impact strength against impacts by working tools as the support (1) is removed. The unevenness (16) of the lower portion (15) comprise a plurality of projections (19) arranged along substantially circular rings (20) lying on planes (ττ) that are transverse to and longitudinally offset from said longitudinal axis (L). A method of forming the above described reinforced support (1) for building applications.

Inventors:
AMADIO ALESSANDRO (IT)
Application Number:
PCT/IB2018/053553
Publication Date:
November 29, 2018
Filing Date:
May 21, 2018
Export Citation:
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Assignee:
AMADIO & C S P A (IT)
International Classes:
E04G25/06; E04G25/00; E04G25/04
Domestic Patent References:
WO2010123360A12010-10-28
Foreign References:
EP2102433A12009-09-23
US4997320A1991-03-05
Attorney, Agent or Firm:
MAROSCIA, Antonio (IT)
Download PDF:
Claims:
CLAIMS

1 . A reinforced building support (1 ) comprising:

an outer tubular element (4) defining a longitudinal axis (L) and having, at one longitudinal end (2), a lower transverse plate (5) adapted to contact a floor or a load-bearing structure;

an inner tubular element (6) telescopically housed in said outer tubular element (4) along said longitudinal axis (L) and having an upper transverse plate (8) designed to contact a ceiling or a structure to be supported;

wherein said outer tubular element (4) comprises a substantially cylindrical side wall (13), which is divided into a substantially smooth upper portion (14) and a lower portion (15) having unevenness (16) for defining a reinforcement area (17) and for imparting impact strength against impacts by working tools as the support (1 ) is removed;

characterized in that the unevenness (16) of said lower portion (15) comprise a plurality of projections (19) arranged along substantially circular rings (20) lying on planes (ττ) that are transverse to and longitudinally offset from said longitudinal axis (L).

2. Support as claimed in claim 1 , characterized in that said projections (19) have a substantially rounded shape, projecting out of said side wall (13).

3. Support as claimed in claim 2, characterized in that said rounded shape is substantially a spherical dome shape.

4. Support as claimed in claim 1 , characterized in that each of said rings (20) comprises at least six angularly offset projections (19).

5. Support as claimed in claim 1 , characterized in that the projections (19) of each ring (20) are arranged along a plane (ττ) that is substantially perpendicular to said longitudinal axis (L).

6. Support as claimed in claim 5, characterized in that the projections (19) of each ring (20) are angularly offset from the projections (19) of the longitudinally offset rings (20') by an angle (a) of about 30°, so that the projections (19) are longitudinally aligned every two orders of rings (20).

7. Support as claimed in claim 6, characterized in that the projections (19) of the longitudinally offset rings (20) are arranged along helices (22) whose inclination (β) is about 33° with respect to the longitudinal axis (L).

8. Support as claimed in claim 5, characterized in that each projection (19) of a ring (20) is axially aligned with a projection (19) of a ring (20"'), that is axially offset by three orders.

9. Support as claimed in claim 8, characterized in that the projections (19) of the longitudinally offset rings (20) are arranged along helices (24) whose inclination (ω) is about 18° with respect to the longitudinal axis (L).

10. Support as claimed in claim 1 , characterized in that the projections (19) of the longitudinally offset rings (20) are arranged along a first group of helices (25) having an inclination (φ) of approximately 30° relative to said longitudinal axis (L) and along a second group of helices (26) offset with an inclination (φ') of approximately 60° relative to said longitudinal axis (L) and directed opposite to the first group.

1 1 . Support as claimed in one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that said projections (19) are obtained by radially deforming the side wall (13) of said outer tubular element (4) from the inner surface (21 ) of said wall (13).

12. A method of forming a reinforced support (1 ) for building applications, said method comprising the steps of:

a) providing an outer tubular element (4) having a substantially cylindrical side wall (13) that defines a longitudinal axis (L);

b) providing an inner tubular element (6) having an outside diameter (d-i) that is smaller than the inside diameter (d2) of said outer tubular element (4), such as to be telescopically received in the latter;

c) forming a lower portion (15) defining a reinforcing area (17) in in said substantially cylindrical wall (13) of said outer tubular element (4);

characterized in that said reinforcing area (17) is obtained by plastic deformation of said side wall (13) with a number of balls (27) introduced into the interior of said outer tubular element (4) and pushed radially outwards to provide a plurality of projections (19) on said side wall (13), which are arranged along a ring (20) substantially transverse to said longitudinal axis (L), said deformation being repeated in longitudinally staggered positions of said reinforcing area (17) to form projections (19) arranged along a series of adjacent, longitudinally offset rings (20).

Description:
REINFORCED SUPPORT FOR BUILDING APPLICATIONS AND METHOD OF FORMING SUCH REINFORCED SUPPORT

Field of The Invention

[0001] The present invention generally finds application in the field of supports for building and industrial applications and particularly relates to a reinforced support for building applications.

[0002] The invention further relates to a method of forming such reinforced support for building applications.

Background art

[0003] Prop-like supports have been long known to be used in the field of building and constructions for supporting temporary timbering.

[0004] These supports are composed of an inner tubular element which telescopically fits into an outer tubular element adapted to be placed in contact with the ground.

[0005] Furthermore, props may be adjusted in height by pulling out the inner tubular element and introducing a connecting pin into one of the holes formed in its side wall to stop their sliding movement.

[0006] During use, these supports are subjected to fouling caused by deposits of powders and pieces of concrete, which require long and complex operations to disassemble the support and slide the tubular elements.

[0007] When the structure is to be disassembled, the supports are cleaned and later removed by striking blows with a hammer or a similar tool the lower portion of the outer tubular element.

[0008] The side walls of the outer tubular elements tend to be deformed with time due to the blows it has received, thereby preventing telescopic sliding of the inner tubular element and making the support actually useless.

[0009] In an attempt to at least partially obviate these drawbacks, supports have been developed which have reinforcements directly formed on the tubular element.

[0010] EP2102433 discloses a support for building applications having a reinforcement composed of an axially profiled surface at a lower portion of the outer tubular element and having such a size as to withstand hammer blows, thereby reducing deformations.

[0011] Axial profiling is continuous and comprises a series of alternating axial projections and a series of axial recesses, to define a corrugated sectional profile.

[0012] A first drawback of this arrangement is that such continuous axial profiling tends to mechanically stress the material of the tubular element and to considerably change its original mechanical characteristics.

[0013] A further drawback of this arrangement is that the support machining process uses two different tools, one for radially deforming the inner surface of the tubular element and the other for continuously profiling its outer surface.

[0014] This drawback involves an increase of the overall machining costs and times for the support with the reinforcing portion.

[0015] Another drawback of this prior art arrangement is that the axial projections have respective pointed and sharp ends that might injure an operator that would inadvertently contact the support.

[0016] Yet another drawback is that the reinforcing portion does not uniformly distribute the impact imparted by the working tool along the entire extent of the support.

Technical Problem

[0017] In the light of the prior art, the technical problem addressed by the present invention is to provide a reinforced support for building applications that can withstand deformations caused by a working tool, that can be processed in a very simple manner and that can reduce the mechanical stress on the material of the tubular elements.

Disclosure of the invention

[0018] The object of the present invention is to obviate the above drawback, by providing a reinforced support for building applications that is highly efficient and relatively cost-effective.

[0019] A particular object of the present invention is to provide a support as described above that can prevent or reduce the occurrence of deformations caused by a working tool during disassembly thereof.

[0020] A further object of the present invention is to provide a support as described above that is simple and quick to process.

[0021] Another object of the present invention is to provide a support as described above, whose fabrication involves the use of a single working tool.

[0022] Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a support as described above that can be fabricated with processes that do not mechanically stress the reinforcing portion.

[0023] A further object of the present invention is to provide a support as described above that can be used in any operating condition.

[0024] These and other objects, as more clearly explained below, are fulfilled by a reinforced support for building applications comprising an outer tubular element defining a longitudinal axis and having a lower transverse plate at a longitudinal end, for contact with a floor or a load-bearing structure and an inner tubular element, which is telescopically housed in the outer tubular element along the longitudinal axis and has an upper transverse plate designed to contact a ceiling or a structure to be supported.

[0025] The outer tubular element comprises a substantially cylindrical side wall, which is divided into a substantially smooth upper portion and a lower portion having unevenness for imparting impact strength against impacts by working tools as the support is removed.

[0026] The unevenness of the second portion comprise a plurality of projections arranged along substantially circular rings lying on planes that are transverse to and longitudinally offset from the longitudinal axis.

[0027] The invention further relates to a method of forming a reinforced support as defined in claim 12.

[0028] Advantageous embodiments of the invention are obtained in accordance with the dependent claims.

Brief Description of The Drawings

[0029] Further features and advantages of the invention will be more apparent from the detailed description of a preferred, non-exclusive embodiment of a reinforced support for building applications with a reinforced structure according to the invention, which is described as a non-limiting example with the help of the following drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the reinforced support for building applications according to the invention;

FIG. 2 is a front view of a first detail of the support of Fig. 1 in a first operating configuration;

FIG. 3 is a broken away top view with a relative enlargement of the first detail of the support of Fig. 2;

FIG. 4 is a front view of the first detail of the support of Fig. 1 in a second operating configuration;

FIG. 5 is a broken away top view with a relative enlargement of the first detail of the support of Fig. 4;

FIG. 6 is a front view of the first detail of the support of Fig. 1 in a third operating configuration;

FIG. 7 is a broken away side view of a device for machining the support of Fig. 1 .

Detailed description of a preferred exemplary embodiment

[0030] Particularly referring to the figures, there is shown a reinforced support for building applications, generally designated by numeral 1 , for supporting a ceiling or a building structure.

[0031] The support 1 is generally made of steel and comprises one end 2 in contact with the ground, a floor or another load-bearing structure, not shown, and another end 3 in contact with the ceiling or a building structure to be supported, also not shown.

[0032] As is known per se, the ceiling or structure might be supported by a plurality of supports 1 of the present invention, in side-by-side arrangement.

[0033] As best shown in FIG. 1 , the support 1 comprises an outer tubular element 4 which defines a longitudinal axis L and has, at one longitudinal end 2, a lower transverse plate 5 adapted to contact the floor or the load-bearing structure. [0034] Furthermore, the support 1 comprises an inner tubular element 6 telescopically housed in the outer tubular element 4 along the longitudinal axis L.

[0035] The inner tubular element 6 is telescopically introduced into the outer tubular element 4 from the longitudinal end 7 opposite to that in which the lower transverse plate 5 is mounted and its outside diameter di , for this purpose, is smaller than the inside diameter d2 of the outer tubular element 4.

[0036] As shown in FIG. 1 , the inner tubular element 6 comprises an upper transverse plate 8 similar to that of the outer tubular element 4 and intended to contact the aforementioned ceiling or structure to be supported.

[0037] Advantageously, the inner tubular element 6 comprises an outer cylindrical wall 9 with a plurality of longitudinally offset holes 10 adapted to receive a locking pin 1 1 .

[0038] The pin 1 1 is associated with a clamp 12 that is coupled to the outer tubular element 4 to lock the sliding movement of the inner tubular element 6 relative to the latter, in a predetermined longitudinal position corresponding to the hole 10 in which it is inserted.

[0039] The outer tubular element 4 comprises a substantially cylindrical side wall 13 divided into a substantially smooth upper portion 14 and a lower portion 15 having unevenness 16.

[0040] The lower portion 15 is adapted to define a reinforcing area 17 of the support 1 and to impart greater strength against impacts by of a working tool upon removal of the support 1 .

[0041] In order to remove or displace the support 1 relative to the ceiling or structure, an operator must repeatedly hit the lower portion 15 of the outer tubular element 4 with a suitable tool, e.g. a hammer or a ram, until the transverse plates 5, 8 of the support 1 will be disengaged from the floor and the ceiling.

[0042] The lower reinforcing portion 15 may be spaced apart from the lower plate 5 by a further portion 18 of the side wall 13 of the outer tubular element 4, which is also smooth and similar to the upper portion 14. [0043] Furthermore, the longitudinal dimensions of the upper portion 14 and the lower portion 15 may be changed, provided that the longitudinal dimension of the upper portion 14 is generally greater than the longitudinal dimension of the lower portion 15.

[0044] In a peculiar aspect of the invention, the unevenness 16 of the lower portion 15 comprise a plurality of projections 19 arranged along substantially circular rings 20 lying on planes π that are transverse to and longitudinally offset from the longitudinal axis L.

[0045] Therefore, in order to obtain the lower reinforcing portion 15, the outer tubular element 4 is machined by locally and discontinuously deform its side wall 13, thereby limiting the changes of the mechanical characteristics of the material of the support 1 .

[0046] Particularly, the projections 19 may be obtained by radially deforming the side wall 13 of the outer tubular element 4 from the inner surface 21 of the side wall 13.

[0047] Advantageously, the radial deformation of the inner surface 21 of the outer tubular element 4 does not change the inside diameter d20f the latter, and does not hinder the telescopic sliding movement of the inner tubular element 6.

[0048] Preferably, the projections 19 may have a substantially outwardly- projecting rounded shape and, as best shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, the rounded shape is substantially a spherical dome shape.

[0049] The projections 19 may have a radius of curvature r, for example, of

1 .1 cm, 2 cm or 2.2 cm according to the inside diameter d2 of the outer tubular element 4. Nevertheless, these dimensions may be also slightly different, without departure from the scope of the present invention.

[0050] As shown in the figures, each ring 20 comprises at least six projections

19, which are angularly offset from each other with an angular pitch p of 60°.

Furthermore, the reinforcing area 17 comprises at least seven rings 20, spaced apart with a constant longitudinal pitch s.

[0051] The number of projections 19 for each ring 20 and the overall number of rings 20 may also be different from those as set forth above, without departure from the above discussed scope.

[0052] In the two embodiments of the invention as shown in FIGS. 2 to 5, the rings 20 are arranged along a respective plane π substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis L.

[0053] Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 6, the rings 20 may be arranged along respective planes π inclined with respect to the perpendicular to the longitudinal axis L at a predetermined angle.

[0054] In the first embodiment of the invention, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the projections 19 of each ring 20 are angularly offset from the projections 19 of the longitudinally offset rings 21 ' by an angle a of about 30°. Thus, the projections 19 are longitudinally aligned every two orders of rings 20.

[0055] In this configuration, the projections 19 of the longitudinally offset rings 20' are arranged along helices 22 whose inclination β is about 33° with respect to the longitudinal axis L.

[0056] In an alternative embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, each projection 19 of a ring 20 is aligned with a projection 19 of another ring 20, which is longitudinally offset by three orders.

[0057] Particularly referring to FIG. 4, the projections 19 of the second upper ring 20' are angularly offset from the projections 19 of the first upper ring 20 by 30° in one direction of rotation, whereas the projections of the third ring 20" and the fourth ring 20"' are angularly offset from the projections 19 of the second ring 20' at an angle δ that progressively increases by 15° in the opposite direction of rotation.

[0058] By this arrangement, the projections 19 of the first 20 and the fourth ring 20"', starting from the upper end 23 of the reinforcing portion 15, are axially aligned, and this pattern is repeated throughout the extent of the reinforcing portion 15.

[0059] In this embodiment, the projections 19 of the longitudinally offset rings 20' are arranged along helices 24 whose inclination ω is about 18° with respect to the longitudinal axis L. [0060] In the third embodiment as shown in FIG. 6, the projections 19 are arranged along a first group of helices 25 having an inclination φ of approximately 30° relative to said longitudinal axis L and along a second group of helices 26 offset with an inclination φ' of approximately 60° relative to said longitudinal axis L and directed opposite to the first group, corresponding to the rings 20.

[0061] In a further aspect, the invention relates to a method of forming a reinforced support 1 for building applications as described above and comprising a step of a) providing an outer tubular element 4 with a substantially cylindrical side wall 13 defining a longitudinal axis L.

[0062] There are also provided a step of b) providing an inner tubular element 6 whose inside diameter di is smaller than the inside diameter d2 of the outer tubular element 4, such that it can be telescopically housed inside the latter, and a step of c) forming a lower portion 15 defining a reinforcing area 17 in the side wall 13 of the outer tubular element 4.

[0063] The reinforcing area 17 is obtained by plastic deformation of the side wall 13 with a series of balls 27 introduced into the outer tubular element 4 and pushed radially outwards to form a plurality of projections 19 on the side wall, which are arranged along a ring 20 substantially transverse the longitudinal axis L.

[0064] Furthermore, the deformation is repeated in longitudinally staggered positions of the reinforcing area 17 to form projections 19 arranged along a series of adjacent, longitudinally offset rings 20.

[0065] For this purpose, an expander device 28 is provided, which comprises as many balls 27 as the balls 19 to be formed on the support 1 and arranged along a respective ring 29 in a sleeve-shaped seat 30, as best shown in FIG. 7.

[0066] Furthermore, the expander device 28 comprises a wedging tie rod 31 with a plurality of passages 32 for the balls 27 and coupled to a pneumatic or hydraulic actuator, not shown.

[0067] The sleeve 30 is introduced into the outer tubular element 4 and the tie rod 31 is slid along the longitudinal axis L by the action of the actuator.

[0068] The longitudinal sliding movement of the tie rod 31 causes the balls 27 to be radially displaced and to contact the inner surface 21 of the outer tubular element 4, thereby deforming it.

[0069] It will be appreciated from the foregoing that the reinforced support for building applications fulfills the intended objects and particularly exhibits high deformation strength, although the tubular elements are subjected to some minor mechanical stress during machining.

[0070] The reinforced support of the invention is susceptible of a number of changes and variants, within the inventive concept disclosed in the appended claims.

[0071] While the reinforced support has been described with particular reference to the accompanying figures, the numerals referred to in the disclosure and claims are only used for the sake of a better intelligibility of the invention and shall not be intended to limit the claimed scope in any manner. Industrial Applicability

[0072] The present invention may find application in industry, because it can be produced on an industrial scale in factories for manufacturing props for building and industrial applications.




 
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