U.S. patent application number 10/618908 was filed with the patent office on 2004-01-22 for wale and retaining wall system.
Invention is credited to Troutman, Dustin L., Weyant, Shane E..
Application Number | 20040013475 10/618908 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 30443426 |
Filed Date | 2004-01-22 |
United States Patent
Application |
20040013475 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Weyant, Shane E. ; et
al. |
January 22, 2004 |
Wale and retaining wall system
Abstract
The present invention relates generally to a wale for use in
bracing a retaining wall. The wale is comprise of a back wall, a
front wall having a channel formed therein, and a plurality of
connecting walls connecting the back and front walls to form at
least one chamber between the back and front walls. In one
embodiment, the wale is of unitary construction and the plurality
of connecting walls includes top and bottom walls which form a
single chamber between the back and front walls. In an alternative
embodiment, the wale is of a unitary construction and the plurality
of connecting walls includes a top, upper reinforcing, lower
reinforcing, and bottom walls, which form a plurality of chambers
between the back and front walls. The wale may by made of a
pultruded composite material such as a fiberglass reinforced
plastic (FRP) resin impregnated composite. A seawall system using
such a waler is also described.
Inventors: |
Weyant, Shane E.; (Bedford,
PA) ; Troutman, Dustin L.; (Hopewell, PA) |
Correspondence
Address: |
THORP REED & ARMSTRONG, LLP
ONE OXFORD CENTRE
301 GRANT STREET, 14TH FLOOR
PITTSBURGH
PA
15219-1425
US
|
Family ID: |
30443426 |
Appl. No.: |
10/618908 |
Filed: |
July 14, 2003 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
10618908 |
Jul 14, 2003 |
|
|
|
10199852 |
Jul 19, 2002 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
405/284 ;
405/272; 405/285 |
Current CPC
Class: |
E02D 5/76 20130101; E02D
2300/007 20130101; E02D 2300/0054 20130101; E02D 5/16 20130101;
E02D 2300/0006 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
405/284 ;
405/285; 405/272 |
International
Class: |
E02D 005/00; E21D
005/00 |
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A wale for use in bracing a retaining wall, said wale
comprising: a back wall; a front wall having a channel formed
therein; and a plurality of connecting walls connecting said back
and front walls to form at least one chamber between said back wall
and said front wall.
2. The wale of claim 1 wherein said wale is of a unitary
construction and said plurality of connecting walls includes a top
wall and a bottom wall, and wherein a single chamber is formed
between said back wall and said front wall.
3. The wale of claim 1 wherein said wale is of a unitary
construction and said plurality of connecting walls includes a top
wall, an upper reinforcing wall, a lower reinforcing wall, and a
bottom wall, and wherein a plurality of chambers are formed between
said back wall and said front wall.
4. The wale of claim 1 wherein said wale further comprises a
pultruded composite material.
5. The wale of claim 4 wherein said composite material is
fiberglass reinforced plastic resin impregnated composite.
6. A retaining wall wale, comprising: a back wall; a front wall
having a top portion and a bottom portion interconnected by a
C-shaped channel portion; a top wall connecting said back wall to
said top portion; and a bottom wall connecting said back wall to
said bottom portion to form a chamber between said back wall and
said front wall.
7. The wale of claim 6 further comprising: an upper reinforcing
wall and a lower reinforcing wall each connecting said back wall to
at least one of said top portion, said C-shaped channel portion,
and said bottom portion such that a plurality of chambers are
formed between said back wall and said front wall.
8. A retaining wall system, comprising: a plurality of
inter-locking sheet pilings; and a tieback system comprising: a
plurality of anchors; a plurality of tieback rods; a plurality of
tieback fasteners; and a member for distributing a force exerted by
said anchors, said tieback rods, and said tieback fasteners along
said plurality of sheet pilings, at least one of said tieback rods
and said member being constructed of a pultruded, composite
material.
9. The retaining wall system of claim 8 further comprising: a cap
member for covering a top of said plurality of sheet pilings; a cap
spacer tube; and a cap connector for joining at least two adjacent
cap members.
10. The retaining wall system of claim 8 wherein each of said
plurality of interlocking sheet pilings further comprises: a male
connector extending along a first edge thereof; and a female
connector extending along a second edge thereof.
11. The retaining wall system of claim 8 further comprising an
angled sheet piling connector for interlocking with an edge of said
sheet pilings.
12. The retaining wall system of claim 8 wherein said member for
distributing a force is a cap channel.
13. The retaining wall system of claim 8 wherein said member for
distributing a force is a wale.
14. The retaining wall system of claim 13 wherein said wale further
comprises: a back wall; a front wall having a channel formed
therein; and a plurality of connecting walls connecting said back
and front walls to form at least one chamber between said back wall
and said front wall.
15. The retaining wall system of claim 14 wherein said retaining
wall system further comprises a wale splice formed to fit within
said channel of and cover at least a portion of said front wall of
said wale.
16. The retaining wall system of claim 8 wherein each of said
plurality of tieback rods has a first end and a second end, said
first end being secured to one of said anchors, said second end
being secured on an opposite side of said retaining wall relative
to said anchors, said second end passing through said sheet
pilings.
17. The retaining wall system of claim 8 wherein a portion of at
least one of said plurality of tieback rods comprises a pultruded
composite material.
18. The retaining wall system of claim 16 wherein said second end
passes through at least one of said cap and said waler.
19. The retaining wall system of claim 8 wherein said cap further
comprises: a plurality of walls forming a T-shaped channel, said
plurality of walls comprising: top wall connecting a first upper
side wall and a second upper side wall; a first offset wall
connecting said first upper side wall to a first lower side wall;
and a second offset wall connecting said second upper side wall to
a second lower side wall.
20. The retaining wall system of claim 19 wherein said cap further
comprises: a plurality of walls forming a T-shaped channel, said
plurality of walls comprising: top wall connecting a first upper
side wall and a second upper side wall; a first offset wall
connecting said first upper side wall to a first lower side wall;
and a second offset wall connecting said second upper side wall to
a second lower side wall, said second offset wall and said lower
side wall forming a cap channel.
20. The retaining wall system of claim 19 further comprising a cap
spacer tube, said cap spacer tube operable to separate said first
lower side wall from said second lower side wall.
21. The retaining wall system of claim 20 wherein said cap spacer
tube further comprises a square, hollow tube having a opening on
one side thereof.
22. The retaining wall system of claim 8 wherein said cap slice is
sized to fit into a void formed within said cap member.
23. The retaining wall system of claim 8 wherein said cap slice is
sized to fit into a void formed by said cap member and said
plurality of sheet pilings.
24. A tieback rod for use in bracing a retaining wall, comprising:
a rod shaft having a first end and a second end; and a portion of
said tieback rod being a pultruded composite material.
25. The tieback rod of claim 24 wherein said tieback rod is of a
unitary construction.
26. The tieback rod of claim 24 wherein said rod shaft further
comprises a metallic material encased within a pultruded composite
material.
27. The tieback rod of claim 24 wherein said rod shaft is of a
predetermined diameter and said first end is separated from said
second end by a predetermined length.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention relates generally to
pultruded-composite components and more particularly to the
application of pultruded-composite components for a sheet pile
system, such as for a retaining wall.
BACKGROUND
[0002] The use of sheet pile systems for retaining walls is know in
the art. Examples of such systems include U.S. Pat. No. 6,135,675
to Moreau, U.S. Pat. No. 5,145,287 to Hooper et al., and U.S. Pat.
No. 4,690,588 to Berger. Wood, steel, aluminum, and vinyl have
traditionally been used to construct retaining walls. Each of these
materials, however, has certain limitations. For example, wood is
subject to rotting and insect infestation, and thus, has a
relatively short life span as compared to the other materials.
Steel is subject to corrosion, and because of its weight, requires
additional equipment and manpower to install, thus increasing its
overall cost. Aluminum, although lighter than steel and easier to
install, is also subject to corrosion in certain applications.
Vinyl, although lightweight and resistant to corrosion, lacks the
strength of the other materials, and thus, is usually required to
be used in conjunction with one or more of the other materials.
[0003] Composite components have been introduced to replace wood,
steel, aluminum, and vinyl sheet pile components. Composite
materials may be manufactured using a pultrusion process. In one
type of pultrusion process, glass fibers are pulled through a resin
bath where the glass fibers become saturated with a liquid
thermosetting resin. Next, the coated fibers are formed to the
proper shape using a forming guide or die. Finally, the reinforced
material may be drawn through a heated curing die. Composite sheet
pile components are stronger, easier to install, and longer lasting
than their wood, steel, aluminum, and vinyl counterparts.
[0004] In a typical sheet pile retaining wall installation, pilings
are driven into the ground using a vibratory hammer, vibratory
plate compactor, jackhammer with a sheet shoe, or a drop impact
hammer, among others. One or more pilings may be driven into the
ground at the same time. Adjacent pilings may be interconnected to
form a continuous wall. For example, a piling may have a "male"
connector on one end and a "female" connector on the other end. The
male connector of a first piling is mated with the female connector
of a second piling, and the male connector of the second piling is
mated with the female connector of a third piling, and so on, to
form the retaining wall. One or more rows of horizontal supports,
known as wales or walers, may be placed across the front or back
face of the wall to lend additional support. Also, a cap and cap
channel may be placed on the top of the wall.
[0005] The cap with a cap channel and wales may be connected to a
tieback system, which secures the retaining wall. A tieback system
normally includes a series of anchor members (or deadmans) and
tieback rods. In a seawall application, for example, the tieback
system has an anchor located on the land side of the seawall. One
end of a tieback rod is attached to the anchor. The other end of
the tieback rod passes through the pilings and is secured with a
fastener on the sea side of the seawall. In most seawall
applications, the tieback rod also passes through the cap and cap
channel or wale. Thus, the cap, cap channel, and wale aid in
distributing the retaining force exerted by the tieback system over
the face of the seawall.
[0006] Prior art retaining wall typically use metallic (for
example, galvanized, stainless steel, and resin treated steel, etc.
) tieback rods. The metallic tieback rods are treated to resist
corrosion, however, the metallic tieback rods inevitably corrode
over time. The corrosion of the metallic tieback rod may also
adversely affect the anchors and retaining wall to which the
tieback rod is attached.
[0007] Thus, there is the need for a composite tieback rod that
better resists the effects of corrosion, that will not adversely
affect the anchors and retaining wall to which it is attached, and
may be used in a tieback system having composite components.
[0008] Furthermore, prior art retaining walls typically use wooden
wales. In addition to rotting and insect infestation mentioned
above, the use of wooden wales present other problems. For example,
the tieback rod and its fastener may protrude from the wale. The
exposed end may damage anything coming into contact with the wale.
For example, boats pulling up next to a seawall may be scratched,
gouged, or even punctured by the tieback rod end protruding from
the wale. To overcome this problem, countersink holes may be
drilled into the wooden wale such that the tieback rod end and the
fastener do not protrude past the face of the wale. However,
drilling countersink holes increases the labor necessary to install
the wale.
[0009] Thus, there is a need for a composite wale that resists
rotting, insect infestation, and corrosion (among others), and that
is formed with a recess that prevents a tieback rod end and its
fastener from protruding beyond the face of the wale. Furthermore,
a need exits for a retaining wall system that includes sufficient
structural capabilities, which resists rotting, insect infestation,
corrosion, and other detrimental effects, and which is lightweight
and easy to install.
SUMMARY
[0010] The present invention relates to a wale for use in bracing a
retaining wall. The wale is comprised of a back wall, a front wall
having a channel formed therein, and a plurality of connecting
walls connecting the back and front walls to form at least one
chamber therebetween. In one embodiment, the wale is of unitary
construction and the plurality of connecting walls include top and
bottom walls which form a single chamber between the back and front
walls. In an alternative embodiment, the wale is of a unitary
construction and the plurality of connecting walls include a top,
upper reinforcing, lower reinforcing, and bottom walls, which form
a plurality of chambers between the back and front walls. The wale
may be made from a pultruded composite material, such as a
fiberglass reinforced plastic (FRP) resin impregnated
composite.
[0011] The present invention also relates to a retaining wall
system comprised of a plurality of anchors, a plurality of tieback
rods, a plurality of tieback fasteners, a plurality of pultruded,
composite, inter-locking sheet pilings, and a cap member comprised
of the same material as, and operable to cover the top of, the
sheet pilings. The retaining wall system also includes a cap
connector operable to join at least two adjacent cap members. The
cap, alone or in combination with a cap channel, and/or a wale
member are operable to distribute a force exerted by the anchors,
tieback rods, and tieback fasteners along the plurality of sheet
pilings. The wale member is constructed of the same material as the
sheet pilings, and adjacent wale members are joined by a wale
splice.
[0012] The retaining wall system's tieback rods may have a first
end and a second end, the first end being secured to one of the
anchors and a second end being secured by a tieback fastener on the
opposite side of the retaining wall relative to the anchor after
passing through the sheet pilings. Alternatively, the second end of
the tieback rod (after passing through the sheet piling) may
further pass through a cap or a wale before being secured by the
tieback fastener on the opposite side of the retaining wall
relative to the anchor. The tieback rod is comprised of a composite
pultruded material and may be of unitary construction.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0013] To enable the present invention to be easily understood and
readily practiced, the present invention will now be described for
purposes of illustration and not limitation, in connection with the
following figures wherein:
[0014] FIG. 1 illustrates the cross-section of a retaining wall
wale according to an embodiment of the present invention.
[0015] FIG. 1A illustrates a tieback rod and tieback fastener
within the channel portion of the wale shown in FIG. 1 according to
an embodiment of the present invention.
[0016] FIG. 2 illustrates a wale splice used to connect two wales
(as illustrated in FIG. 1) according to an embodiment of the
present invention.
[0017] FIG. 3A is a view of the wale splice of FIG. 2 according to
an embodiment of the present invention.
[0018] FIG. 3B is a cross-sectional view of the wale splice of FIG.
2 according to an embodiment of the present invention.
[0019] FIG. 4 illustrates a retaining wall system according to an
embodiment of the present invention.
[0020] FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of a tieback system
according to an alternative embodiment of the present
invention.
[0021] FIG. 6 illustrates the cross-section of a sheet piling
according to an embodiment of the present invention.
[0022] FIG. 7 illustrates a cross-section of a sheet piling
connector according to an embodiment of the present invention.
[0023] FIG. 8 illustrates a cross-section of a sheet piling
connector according to an alternative embodiment of the present
invention.
[0024] FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of a cap for the retaining
wall system of FIG. 4 according to an embodiment of the present
invention.
[0025] FIG. 10 is a detailed bottom view of the cap spacer tube for
cap shown in FIG. 9 according to an embodiment of the present
invention.
[0026] FIG. 10A is a cross-sectional view of the cap spacer tube of
FIG. 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention.
[0027] FIG. 11 is a cutaway view of the caps shown in FIG. 9 to
illustrate cap splices of the retaining wall system of FIG. 4
according to an embodiment of the present invention.
[0028] FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view of a cap channel attached
to the cap of FIG. 9 according to an embodiment of the present
invention.
[0029] FIG. 13 is a detailed view of the cap channel of FIG. 12
according to an embodiment of the present invention.
[0030] FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view of a cap for the retaining
wall system of FIG. 4 according to an embodiment of the present
invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0031] FIG. 1 illustrates a cross-section of a retaining wall wale
10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The wale 10
may be used to provide addition bracing to a retaining wall and to
distribute, across the face or back of a retaining wall, the forces
exerted by a tieback system. Wale 10 is comprised of composite
materials (for example, a fiber reinforced plastic (FRP) resin
impregnated composite, etc.), is of unitary construction, and is
formed using a pultrusion process.
[0032] It should be noted, that other composite materials,
non-unitary construction methods, and other manufacturing
techniques may be used while remaining within the scope of the
present invention. For example, thermoset resin systems (such as
isopolyester, vinylester, epoxy, polyurethane, and phenolic, among
others) may be used with various reinforcement materials (such as
e-glass, s-glass, a-glass, carbon, graphite, and Aramid, among
others) while remaining within the scope of the present invention.
Additionally, thermoplastic systems may also be used while
remaining within the scope of the present invention.
[0033] In the current embodiment, wale 10 is substantially C-shaped
and is comprised of a back wall 12 which is connected to a front
wall 14 by a plurality of connecting walls: a top wall 22, a bottom
wall 24, an upper reinforcing wall 26, and a lower reinforcing wall
28. The front wall 14 is comprised of a top portion 16, a C-shaped
channel portion 18, and a bottom portion 20. The channel portion 18
is of a sufficient depth such that when secured to a retaining wall
by a tieback rod and fastener, the tieback rod end and fastener
will not protrude from the channel portion 18.
[0034] The back 12, front 14, and connecting 22, 24, 26, 28 walls
may form one or more chambers 30, 32, 34 within the wale 10. In the
current embodiment, three chambers 30, 32, 34 are shown. The upper
chamber 30 is defined by the back wall 12, top wall 22, top portion
16, channel portion 18, and upper reinforcing wall 26. The middle
chamber 32 is defined by the back wall 12, upper reinforcing wall
26, channel portion 18, and lower reinforcing wall 28. The lower
chamber is defined by the back wall 12, bottom wall 24, bottom
portion 20, channel portion 18 and lower reinforcing wall 28. It
should be noted that the number, shape, and manner of defining the
chambers may be varied while remaining within the scope of the
present invention. As an example, reinforcing walls may connect the
channel portion 18 to the top 22 and bottom 24 walls instead of to
the back wall 12.
[0035] FIG. 1A illustrates a tieback rod 54 and tieback fastener 74
within the channel portion 18 of the wale 10 shown in FIG. 1
according to an embodiment of the present invention. One end of the
tieback rod 54 is attached to an anchor (not shown in FIG. 1A)
while the other end passes through the sheet piling (not shown in
FIG. 1A) and the wale 10. In the current embodiment, the end of the
tieback rod 54 passes through the middle chamber 32 and into the
channel portion 18 of the wale 10. The end of tieback rod 54 is
secured by a tieback fastener 74. The end of the tieback rod 54 and
the fastener 74 are contained within the channel portion 18 and do
not protrude out of the channel portion 18 and beyond the face of
the top 16 and bottom 20 portions of the front wall 14. In one
embodiment of the present invention, both the tieback rod 54 and
the fastener 74 are constructed of FRP. In another embodiment, a
metallic tieback rod is encased in FRP.
[0036] FIG. 2 illustrates a wale splice 36 used to connect two
wales (as illustrated in FIG. 1) 10A, 10B according to an
embodiment of the present invention. The ends of two wales 10A, 10B
abut each other and are held in place by the wale splice 36.
[0037] FIGS. 3A and 3B are a detailed front and cross-sectional
view, respectively, of the wale splice 36 as shown in FIG. 2. In
the current embodiment, and as best illustrated in FIG. 3B, wale
splice 36 is formed to fit within the channel portion 18, cover the
top 16 and bottom 20 portions of the front wall 14, and wrap around
to cover a portion of the top 22 and bottom 24 walls of wale 10. As
best illustrated in FIG. 3A, wale splice 36 includes a plurality of
splice holes 38A, 38B which allow a bolt (or other fastener) from
wales 10A, 10B to be inserted though wale splice 36.
[0038] In the current embodiment, wale splice 36 is placed over the
joint where wale 10A abuts wale 10B. Splice hole 38A is aligned
with a wale hole in wale 10A. Splice hole 38B is aligned with a
wale hole in wale 10B. Bolts (not shown in FIG. 2) are then passed
through the wale holes and splice holes 38A, 38B and secured with a
nut (not shown in FIG. 2). The bolt end and fastener do not extend
out of the channel of the wale splice 36. The wale splice 36
secures wale 10A to wale 10B.
[0039] In the current embodiment, holes 38A, 38B are elliptical
slots disposed vertically to permit adjustment of the wale splice
36. It should be noted that other opening shapes (such as
horizontally disposed elliptical slots and round holes, among
others) may be used while remaining within the scope of the present
invention. It should also be noted a tieback rod end, may be used
to secure the wale splice 36 to the wale 10A, 10B.
[0040] FIG. 4 illustrates a retaining wall system 40 according to
an embodiment of the present invention. Retaining wall system 40
includes a tieback system 41, sheet pilings 60, caps 44, a cap
spacer tube 76 (not shown in FIG. 4), cap connector (not shown in
FIG. 4) sheet piling connectors 66, 68 (not shown in FIG. 4),
template supports 48, and inside wales 46. The tieback system 41
may include anchors (or deadmans) 50, connecting boards 52, tieback
rods 54, caps 44, cap channels 80, wales (not shown in FIG. 4),
wale splices (not shown in FIG. 4), and fasteners 74 (not shown in
FIG. 4), among others. The tieback system 41 may be comprised
solely of composite materials, or may be comprised of both
composite and non-composite materials.
[0041] In one embodiment, the retaining wall system 40 is
constructed according to the following layout. One or more anchors
50 are placed into the ground behind where the retaining wall is to
be installed. The anchors 50 are interconnected using one or more
connecting boards 52. One or more template supports 48 are driven
into the ground (in front of the anchors 50) in the approximate
location of where the sheet pilings 60 are to be located. The
template supports 48 act as an installation guide for the sheet
pilings 60. The template supports 48 may be connected to each other
by one or more inside wales 46. The sheet pilings 60 are driven
into the ground in front of and next to the template supports 48. A
portion of each sheet piling 60 is left exposed above the mud line
58. The sheet pilings 60 are inter-connected with each other to
form the retaining wall. Once the sheet pilings 60 are installed,
the template supports 48 and inside wales 46 are removed.
Alternatively, the template supports 48 and inside wales may be
abandoned in place, or may be secured to the retaining wall.
[0042] The tieback system 41 is connected to the retaining wall.
For example, a first end of a tieback rod 54 is attached to an
anchor 50. One or more caps 44 are placed on the top of the sheet
pilings 60. A second end of the tieback rod 54 passes through the
retaining wall sheet pilings 60 and the cap 44. A cap channel 80 is
then placed horizontally across the face of the cap 44; the second
end of the tieback rod 54 passing through the cap channel 80. The
second end of the tieback rod 54 is secured by a tieback fastener
74 (such as a bolt, washer and bolt combination, etc.) positioned
within cap channel 80. A backfill material 56 is then placed
between the anchors 50 and the sheet pilings 60. The backfill 56 is
used to cover and provide additional strength to the tieback system
41.
[0043] FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of a tieback system 41
according to an alternative embodiment of the present invention.
Unlike FIG. 4 in which the cap 44 and cap channel 80 act as a
component of the tieback system 41, FIG. 5 illustrates the tieback
rod 54 securing a wale 10 against the face of the sheet piling 60.
As illustrated in FIG. 5, cap 44 does not functioning as part of
the tieback system 41. The tieback rod 54 may be comprised of a rod
shaft 55 having a first and a second end. In the current
embodiment, the tieback rod 54 is comprised of a pultruded
composite material and is of unitary construction. Alternatively,
the tieback rod 54 may be of non-unitary construction (i.e., only a
portion of the tieback rod 54 may be comprised of a pultruded
composite material). For example, the rod shaft 55 may be comprised
of a metallic material (such as, galvanized steel and stainless
steel, among others) which is encased within a pultruded composite
material. In the current embodiment, the tieback rod 54 is
substantially cylindrical, although other shapes may be used while
remaining within the scope of the present invention. The diameter
and length (as well as the shape) of the tieback rod 54 may
tailored to the specific application.
[0044] In the current embodiment, one end of the tieback rod 54 is
secured to an anchor 50, while the second end passes through the
sheet piling 60 and the center chamber 32 of the wale 10, and is
secured with a tieback fastener 74. In the current embodiment, a
washer and nut combination is used to secure the second end of the
tieback rod 54. The second end of the tieback rod 54 and the
tieback fastener 74 do not protrude out of the channel 18 of the
wale 10. It should be noted that a tieback system 41 which utilizes
both a wale 10 and a cap/cap channel combination may be is used
while remaining within the scope of the present invention.
[0045] FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a sheet piling 60
according to one embodiment of the present invention. Sheet piling
60 is typically shaped in an appropriate manner to add strength and
has a male connector 62 at one end and a female connector 64 at an
opposite end. In the current embodiment, the male connector 62 of a
first sheet piling 60 interconnects with female connector 64 of a
second sheet piling 60. Likewise, the male connector 62 of the
second sheet piling 60 interconnects with a female connector 64 of
a third sheet piling 60, and so on, until the proper length
retaining wall is formed. It should be noted that the shape of the
sheet piling 60 and the type or shape of the male and female
connectors 62, 64 may be varied while remaining with the scope of
the present invention.
[0046] FIGS. 7 and 8 are cross-sectional views of two different
types of sheet piling connectors 66, 68, respectively, according to
an embodiment of the present invention. Sheet piling connectors 66,
68 allow two or more sheet pilings 60 to be attached to one another
at various angles. Sheet piling connector 66, for example, has one
female connector 64 and two male connectors 62A, 62B. Male
connector 62A forms a 180.degree. angle with the female connector
64, whereas male connector 62B forms a 45.degree. angle with the
male connector 62A. Sheet piling connector 66 is referred to as a
180.degree./45.degree. connector. Likewise, sheet piling connector
68 has one female connector 64 and two male connectors 62A, 62B.
Male connector 62A forms a 180.degree. angle with the female
connector 64, however, male connector 62B forms a 90.degree. angle
with the male connector 62A. Sheet piling connector 68 is referred
to as a 180.degree./90.degree. connector. It should be noted that
additional female and male connectors may be added to the sheet
piling connector 66, 68 and their relative angles may be varied
while remaining within the scope of the present invention.
[0047] FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of a cap 44 for the
retaining wall system 40 of FIG. 4 according to an embodiment of
the present invention. Cap 44 covers the top of sheet piling 60. As
shown in FIG. 9, tieback rod 54 enters through the land side of cap
44, passes through a cap spacer tube 76 and the sheet piling 60,
and exits the sea side of cap 44. The tieback rod 54 is then
secured with a tieback fastener 74. For example, in the current
embodiment, tieback rod 54 includes a threaded end to which a
fastener 74 (such as a nut) is attached. Additionally, a shim 82
may be inserted between the sea side of the cap 44 and the tieback
fastener 74 to better distribute the forces exerted by the tieback
system.
[0048] In the current embodiment (as best illustrated in FIG. 9),
cap 44 has multiple walls which form a T-shaped channel. A top cap
wall 86 connects two upper side walls 87, each of which are
connected to a lower side wall 89 via an offset wall 88. Cap spacer
tube 76 separates the two lower side walls 89 and prevents the
T-shaped cap from collapsing under the forces exerted by the
tieback system 41. It should be noted, however, that the shape of
the cap may be altered while remaining within the scope of the
present invention. For example, FIG. 14 illustrates a T-shaped cap
44 in which the upper side walls 87 and offset walls 88 are
rounded.
[0049] FIGS. 10 and 10A illustrate a detailed bottom and
cross-sectional view, respectively, of the cap spacer tube 76 shown
in FIG. 9 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The
cap spacer tube 76 prevents the cap 44 from being crushed when
force is exerted by the tieback system 41. An opening 77 in the
bottom of the cap spacer tube 76 accepts the tieback rod 54 as
shown in FIG. 10. The opening 77, in conjunction with the shim 82,
permits the cap 44 to remain level while accommodating various
entry and exit angles of the tieback rod 54. As illustrated in
FIGS. 10 and 10A, cap spacer tube 76 is substantially an elongated,
hollow square. It should be noted, however, that alternative shapes
may be used while remaining within the scope of the present
invention.
[0050] FIG. 11 is a cut-away view of adjacent caps 44 illustrating
cap splices 70 of the retaining wall system 40 of FIG. 4 according
to an embodiment of the present invention. The caps (e.g., 44A and
44B, 44C and 44D, etc.) are joined by one or more cap splices 70.
In the current embodiment, each cap splice 70 is sized (as best
illustrated in FIGS. 9 and 14) to fit within void formed by the top
cap wall 86, upper side wall 87, offset wall 88, and sheet piling
60. It should be noted, however, that the void into which the cap
splice 44 is placed may be altered while remaining within the scope
of the present invention. As one example, the void may be formed by
the top cap wall 86, the upper side wall 87, the offset wall 88 and
an interior cap wall (not shown), such that the cap splice does not
come into contact with the sheet piling 60.
[0051] In the current embodiment, approximately one-half of the
length of cap splice 70 is inserted into one cap (for example 44A)
and the other one-half of cap splice 70 is inserted into the
adjacent cap (for example 44B). Each cap section (e.g., 44A, 44B)
is then fastened to the cap splice 70, and thus, to each other. In
the current embodiment, self-tapping screws are used to connect a
cap 44 to a cap splice 70. It should be noted that the placement
and number of fasteners used may be dictated by design
considerations, and other fastening means may be used while
remaining within the scope of the present invention.
[0052] Cap splice 70 may also connect adjacent caps 44 that abut
each other at an angle. As illustrated in FIG. 11, caps 44C and 44D
are connected by a cap splice 70 having a 90.degree. angle. It
should be noted that cap splices 70 having specific angles may be
manufactured as a single piece, or two or more cap splices 70 may
be mitered and joined to form the desired angle or angles. Each cap
section (e.g., 44C, 44D) is then fastened to the cap splice 70, and
thus, to each other.
[0053] In the current embodiment, cap splice 70 is substantially an
elongated square, approximately 32 inches in length. It should be
noted that other shapes (for example, that used in FIG. 14) and
lengths may be used for cap splice 70 while remaining within the
scope of the present invention. Furthermore, cap splice 70 may be
hollow, semi-solid, or solid, depending on the application.
[0054] FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view of a cap channel 80
attached to the cap 44 of FIG. 9 according to one embodiment of the
present invention. FIG. 13 is a detailed view of the cap channel 80
as shown in FIG. 12. The cap channel 80 may be used to add
additional support to the cap 44 and distribute the forces exerted
by the tieback system 41, among others. As best illustrated in FIG.
12, cap channel 80 is secured against a lower side wall 89 of the
cap 44, under an offset wall 88, which connects the lower side wall
89 to an upper side wall 87. In an alternative embodiment, the
offset wall 88A and the lower side wall 89B may be constructed to
form a cap channel that is integral to the cap 44, thus eliminating
the need for a separate cap channel 80.
[0055] Referring now to FIG. 13, the cap channel 80 includes one or
more holes 84 for fastening the cap channel 80 to the cap 44. In
the current embodiment, an end of a tieback rod 54 passes through a
cap channel hole 84 and a tieback fastener 74 is attached to the
tieback rod 54. The diameter of the tieback fastener 74 is sized
larger than the diameter of the cap channel hole 84 (or
alternatively, an appropriately sized washer or shim among others
is used) so that the cap channel 80 is secured to the cap 44. In an
alternative embodiment, cap channel 80 is secured to the cap 44
using nuts and bolts that are not a part of the tieback system.
[0056] FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view of a cap 44 for the
retaining wall system of FIG. 4 according to an embodiment of the
present invention. In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 14, cap 44
does not function as part of the tieback system 41, and thus is
secured to the top of sheet piling 69 using means other than the
tieback rod 54 and fastener 74. For example, cap 44 may be secured
to the sheet piling 60 using self-tapping screws (not shown).
[0057] In the current embodiment, all components of the retaining
wall system, including the tieback system 41, sheet pilings 60,
caps 44, wales 10, wale splices 36, cap channels 80, cap spacer
tubes 76, cap splices 70, sheet piling connectors 68, template
supports 48, and inside wales 46, among others, are comprised of
composite materials (such as, FRP), are of unitary construction,
and are formed using a pultrusion process. The retaining wall
system of the present invention is lightweight, easy to install,
and provides sufficient structural capabilities, resists rotting,
insect infestation, corrosion, and detrimental effects. It should
be noted, that other composite materials, non-unitary construction
methods, and other manufacturing techniques may be used while
remaining within the scope of the present invention.
[0058] The above-described embodiments of the invention are
intended to be illustrative only. Numerous alternative embodiments
may be devised by those skilled in the art without departing from
the scope of the following claims.
* * * * *