U.S. patent number 3,838,547 [Application Number 05/354,162] was granted by the patent office on 1974-10-01 for base connection for utility poles.
This patent grant is currently assigned to Bruce-Lake Company. Invention is credited to Raymond F. Meisberger.
United States Patent |
3,838,547 |
Meisberger |
October 1, 1974 |
BASE CONNECTION FOR UTILITY POLES
Abstract
A base connection for metal utility poles in which a plurality
of anchor bolts extend upwardly from a concrete foundation each
having a levelling collar adjustably mounted thereon. Pole
connecting tubes are received in cutout portions in the lower end
of the pole and are secured to the pole by welds extending along
the contiguous regions between the connecting tube and the cutout
portions of the pole. The pole is supported on the anchor bolts
with each pole connecting tube supported on a levelling collar on
each anchor bolt and connected thereto by means of a locking
cap.
Inventors: |
Meisberger; Raymond F. (West
Chester, PA) |
Assignee: |
Bruce-Lake Company
(Coatesville, PA)
|
Family
ID: |
23392116 |
Appl.
No.: |
05/354,162 |
Filed: |
April 25, 1973 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
52/295; 52/296;
248/444.1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
E04H
12/2284 (20130101); E04C 5/165 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
E04H
12/22 (20060101); E04b 001/41 () |
Field of
Search: |
;52/295,296,726,126,292,297,301,300,432,582,731,98,758B
;248/188.4,346 ;240/84 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Murtagh; John E.
Assistant Examiner: Friedman; Carl D.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Smith, Harding, Earley &
Follmer
Claims
I claim:
1. A base connection for a pole-like member supported on a
foundation comprising a plurality of vertically extending anchor
bolts embedded in the foundation and extending upwardly therefrom,
said pole-like member having a plurality of axially extending
cutout portions in the lower end thereof, a plurality of members
for connecting said pole-like member to said anchor bolts, each of
said connecting members being received in an associated cutout
portion in contiguous relation and being secured to said pole-like
member by welds located in axially extending regions whereat said
cutout portions and said connecting members are contiguous, each of
said connecting members having a lower portion extending downwardly
from the lower end of said pole-like member, and means
interconnected between said lower portion of each connecting member
and an associated anchor bolt for securing each of said connecting
members to an associated anchor bolt.
2. A base connection according to claim 1 wherein said means for
securing said connecting members to said anchor bolts comprises a
leveling collar adjustably mounted on each of said anchor bolts and
locking means associated with each anchor bolt and engageable with
said lower portion of an associated connecting member for holding
the same fixedly on an associated leveling collar.
3. A base connection according to claim 2 wherein each locking
means associated with each anchor bolt includes a collar adjustably
engaging said lower portion of an associated connecting member and
having an abutment portion arranged to contact an associated
leveling collar to lock said connecting member in position on said
anchor bolt.
4. A base connection according to claim 1 wherein said pole-like
member comprises an elongated tubular pole and said cutout portions
are spaced circumferentially around said pole.
5. A base connection according to claim 4 wherein each of said
connecting members has a tubular configuration and said cutout
portions in said pole form rectangular cutouts in the lower end of
the pole wall adapted to receive an upper portion of said
connecting member to provide a pair of axially extending contiguous
portions, said welds being located along said pair of contiguous
portions.
6. A base connection according to claim 5 wherein said means for
securing said connecting members to said anchor bolts comprises a
leveling collar adjustably mounted on each of said anchor bolts and
locking means associated with each anchor bolt and engaged with
said lower portion of an associated connecting member for holding
the same with its lower end supported on said leveling collar
associated therewith.
7. A base connection according to claim 6 wherein each locking
means associated with each anchor bolt includes a collar adjustably
engaging said lower portion of an associated connecting member and
having an abutment portion arranged to contact an associated
leveling collar to lock said connecting member in position on said
anchor bolt.
8. A base connection according to claim 6 wherein said tubular pole
is eight sided, said cutout portions being located at the corners
of the pole wall.
9. A base connection according to claim 7 wherein said tubular pole
is eight sided, said cutout portions being located at the corners
of the pole wall.
10. A base connection according to claim 5 wherein each of said
welds comprises a fillet weld on the inside and on the outside of
the pole wall.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates generally to a base connection for utility
poles or the like. More particularly, the invention relates to a
base connection for a tubular metal pole such as would be used for
supporting power lines that transmit high voltage electricity. The
base connection of the invention is more broadly applicable to use
in supporting other pole-like members, such as electric light
poles, traffic signal poles, cooling towers or the like.
Poles of the indicated type may be higher than 200 feet and have,
in the past, been provided with base connections in which the poles
are welded to a flat base plate. However, these prior base
connections have proved unsatisfactory because of failures that
occur at the weld. In the case of high voltage transmission lines,
the falling of one of the poles may cause some or all of the other
poles in the line to fall, possibly causing injury or damage. At
the least, major supplies of power will be lost for an indefinite
time. Utility companies have in the past preferred lattice work
towers over pole towers for supporting high voltage transmission
lines, because of their inherent low cost. However, the lattice
work towers require considerably more room because of their base
dimension and are unsightly. These two negative features have made
use of transmission poles more and more desirable in this space and
esthetic conscious time.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with the invention there is provided a base
connection for a utility pole which involves a strong weld
arrangement for safely supporting the pole. The base connection is
constructed so that a connecting tube or member is welded to the
pole in a manner providing a weld area which is spread over a very
large area and is subject to less stress than the previous base
plate type of weld. Another feature of the base connection in
accordance with the invention is that it includes means for
plumbing the pole during the erection procedure.
Briefly stated, the base connection in accordance with the
invention comprises a plurality of anchor bolts embedded in the
foundation and extending upwardly therefrom. The pole has a
plurality of axially extending cutout portions in its lower end and
a plurality of connecting members received in the cutout portions
and secured to the pole by welds located in axially extending
regions whereat the cutout portions and the connecting members are
contiguous. Means are provided for securing each of the connecting
members to an associated anchor bolt.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a fragmentary view in elevation of a base connection in
accordance with the invention;
FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken on line 2--2 of FIG. 1; and
FIG. 3 is a detail view of a portion of the base connection in
accordance with the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with the preferred embodiment of the invention shown
in FIGS. 1 to 3, there is provided a concrete foundation 10 on
which there is supported a utility pole 12 at its lower end. The
pole 12 is made of a conventional tapered eight-sided tubular steel
construction and, by way of example, may be higher than 200
feet.
The base connection in accordance with the invention comprises
eight anchor bolts 14 embedded in the foundation 10 and arranged in
a cluster with each anchor bolt 14 extending vertically upwardly
from the top of the foundation 10 as is shown in FIG. 1. Each
anchor bolt 14 is threaded at its upper end as indicated at 16.
There are provided eight members for connecting the pole 12 to the
eight anchor bolts 14, such members taking the form of connecting
tubes 18. Each of the connecting tubes 18 fits into a rectangular
cutout portion 20 provided in the lower end of the wall of the pole
12. Cutout portions 20 are circumferentially equally spaced at the
corners of the pole 12. The connecting tubes 18 are secured to the
pole wall by welding along the contiguous regions between the
connecting tubes 18 and the axially extending edges of the cutout
portions 20. These weld regions are best shown in FIG. 3.
Preferably, the welding comprises fillet welds 22 on the inside and
the outside of the pole wall extending axially the full length of
the cutouts 20 in the regions whereat the cutouts 20 and the
connecting tubes 18 are contiguous. It will be apparent that since
these welds 22 extend along the pole axis and are spread over a
substantial area, they are capable of withstanding considerable
stress.
Means are provided for mounting the connecting tubes 18 securely
onto the anchor bolts 14 which are arranged in a cluster so as to
receive the same. To this end, an annular levelling collar 30 is
threadedly mounted onto the threaded portions 16 of the anchor
bolts and is constructed and arranged to support the lower end of
an associated connecting member 18 as is shown in FIG. 3. A tubular
locking cap 32 is associated with each anchor bolt 14 and serves to
lock the associated connecting tube 18 and levelling collar 30
together in a secure manner as is shown in FIG. 3. Thus, each
locking cap 32 has a threaded portion adapted to engage external
threads 19 on the connecting tube 18 and an abutment portion 34
adapted to abut against the lower end of the levelling collar 30.
As will be apparent from FIG. 3, the internal diameter of the
tubular locking cap 32 is such that it is freely movable relative
to the anchor bolt 14 associated therewith.
The mounting of a pole 12 onto the anchor bolt 14 in the concrete
foundation 10 comprises the preliminary steps of sliding a locking
cap 32 onto each of the anchor bolts 14 and then threading
levelling collars 30 onto each of the anchor bolts 14. The
levelling collars are adjusted to a level condition. The pole 12 is
preliminarily prepared by having the pole connecting tubes 18
welded thereon at the cutout portions 20. The pole 12 is then
placed onto the anchor bolts 14 with each connecting tube 18 being
supported on a leveling collar 30 of an associated anchor bolt 14.
The locking caps 32 are then brought into threaded engagement with
the threaded portions 19 at the lower end of each connecting tube
18 and are adjusted to lock each of the connecting tubes 18 onto
the anchor bolt 14 in the position shown in FIG. 3. Each of the
anchor bolts 14 is then checked to be certain that all of the
levelling collars 30 are flush with the lower end of an associated
connecting tube 18. If not, suitable adjustment of the levelling
collar 30, and the locking cap 32, are made to achieve the flush
condition shown in FIG. 3.
It will be noted, if desired, the levelling collars can be adjusted
to a condition which provides a slight lean to the pole 12. This
condition is desirable in some applications.
It will be apparent that various changes may be made in the
construction and arrangement of parts without departing from the
scope of the invention. For example, the size and number of the
anchor bolts will vary according to the load to be supported. Also,
the distance that the connecting tubes extend into the pole wall
and the size of these connecting tubes is determined by the load
conditions.
* * * * *