EP1689939B2 - Girder for a support wall curtain - Google Patents

Abstract

The inventive girder (10) for a support wall curtain comprises a core (12) and two parallel wings (14, 16) which are supported by said core and provided with connection means (20). Said wings (14, 16) are reinforced on the largest part of the width thereof on the side opposite to the core (12) by an excessive material thickness which starts only at a certain distance (d1) from the longitudinal edges of the wing, thereby leaving the thinner wing ends (21) carrying said connection means (20) free. The non-reinforced ends (21) of the wings make it possible to use a conventional connection systems (18) in order to integrate such a girder (10) provided with a high resistant module into the support wall curtains.

Description

The present invention relates to a beam for a retaining curtain and a retaining curtain comprising such beams.

State of the art

Retaining curtains formed, either exclusively of beams or beams and sheet piles, have been known for a long time. They have the advantage of presenting very important resistance modules for an advantageous surface weight. The connections between two beams or a beam and a sheet pile are made at the edges of the flanges of the beams.

PROFILARBED S.A. (Luxembourg) sells under the designation "HZ" an integrated system for making retaining curtains. This integrated system includes special beams, called HZ beams. The edge of the wings of these beams HZ ends with a substantially triangular section bead, which is projecting relative to the outer surface of the wing. On this beaded wing edge, it is possible to slide a RH or RZ-type connection profile making it possible to connect another HZ beam or AZ sheet pile.

It is also known to cold deform the flange edges of the beam so as to give them a wavy profile. On such a corrugated edge, one can then slide a connecting section which allows to connect either another wing edge of a beam or a claw of a sheet pile. Such a system is for example described in the patent application EP-A-0072118 .

It is also known to weld sheet pile claws to the flange edges of the beam to connect sheet piles.

Today, we need retaining curtains with higher and higher resistance modules. One way to substantially increase the resistance module of a beam is to increase the height of its soul. However, the maximum height of the core of the beam is of course determined by the width of the rolling mill. Therefore, to laminate higher joists, new, larger rolling mills would have to be constructed. Another way to increase the resistance module of the beams is to increase the thickness of their wings. This would imply, however, the design of new thick wing fitting systems.

A connecting system for joists with thick wings is known from the document DE 583 471 . These are small joists, the height of the soul being equal to the width of the wing, which can be mounted in the retaining curtain with their soul either perpendicular or parallel to the axis of the curtain. A wing of this beam has a groove rolled or machined along each longitudinal edge in the inner surface of the wing and a bearing rolled or machined in the side edge of the wing. The groove and the bearing make it possible to connect the ends of the wings of two adjacent beams by means of special connector profiles and to connect a wing of a first beam transversely between the two wings of a second beam. It is therefore a very special connection system, which was designed in 1927 for a particular implementation of low joists and which has probably never been successful.

The document US 4,550,582 considered the closest prior art, describes a method of rolling beams with claws for retaining curtain. During lamination, additional locking elements are formed along the wing edges, which can be engaged similarly to known LARSEN fittings for sheet piles. A first type of lock member includes a "bent finger" and "an inch" defining a lock chamber. A second type of lock member comprises a bead adapted to be received in the lock chamber. Along the lock element of said second type is arranged a projection to which several functions are assigned. A first function would be to increase the stability of a stack of beams. The elongated beam on a wing rests indeed on said projection and on the lock element of said first type, which has substantially the same height as said projection. A second function would be to form a support for a guide element when driving a beam into the ground. A third function would be to balance the cross sections of the wings with respect to the soul. Finally, it is also mentioned that said projection would increase the section module of the beam. However, the rolling of such claws and projections is a difficult operation and almost impossible for a beam with wings having a thickness of more than 22 mm. In addition, the practice should still show if this new connection system is proving itself on construction sites.

Summary of the invention

An object of the present invention is to provide a beam that can be easily laminated with a higher resistance module, without having to increase its height significantly, and whose Installation in retaining curtains can be done using various connection systems that have proven themselves on construction sites.

This object is achieved by a beam for retaining curtain according to claims 1, 3 or 4. The reinforcement of the wings by a material thickness, located on the opposite side to the core, allows to significantly increase the resistance module of the beam, without any notable increase in height. The non-reinforced wing tips, whose thickness is comparable to the wing thickness of a conventional beam for retaining curtains, allow on the other hand to use almost all connection systems known for the integration of a beam in a retaining curtain.

In a first embodiment, the connecting means carried by the wingtips comprise a connecting bead. For example, a beam of this type can be easily integrated into a retaining wall using connecting elements comparable to the "RH" or "RZ" type connection profiles of the "HZ" system of PROFILARBED SA. that the maximum thickness of the thickness of material is preferably greater than the height of the bead, so that the bead is recessed relative to a bearing surface formed by the material thickness of the wing. It should be noted that for "RH" type or "RZ" type connection profiles, the wing bead must have a triangular section. However, it is not excluded to design connecting profiles requiring a connecting bead with another section.

In another embodiment, not covered by the claims, at least one of the lower thickness wing tips has a corrugated longitudinal profile to directly form the connecting means. A beam of this type can for example be easily integrated into a retaining curtain as described in the patent application. EP-A-0072118 .

The coupling means may also comprise a connecting section for a sheet pile which is welded end to end on a lateral face of one of the wing tips of smaller thickness. Such a connecting section for a sheet pile can also be carried by a U-shaped section slid on one of the wing tips of lower thickness and fixed to this wing tip by means of two angular welds. This latter embodiment is not the subject of the claims.

Preferably, the extra material thickness has a symmetry with respect to the median plane of the core. To facilitate the rolling of the beam, the extra thickness of material on the wing is advantageously divided in two by a longitudinal groove extending above the core.

The ratio between the thickness of said wingtips and the thickness of the core is preferably between 1.0 and 1.7. The ratio between the maximum thickness of the wing at the thickness of the material and the thickness of the wingtips is preferably between 1.5 and 4.0. The ends of the garments will preferably have a thickness of between 10 mm and 25 mm. If the maximum thickness of a wing at the thickness of material is between 40 mm and 60 mm, it will most often be ensured that in a retaining wall the connections are arranged set back from the bearing surfaces. formed by the extra thicknesses of material.

The present invention is especially interesting for increasing the resistance modulus of a high beam, that is to say for which the ratio between the core height (H) and the wing width (B) is greater than 2, because it makes it possible to obtain a notable increase in its resistance modulus without any significant additional increase in its height.

In a retaining wall according to claims 11 or 12, at least two beams according to the invention are connected at their wings with connecting profiles. The thicknesses of material advantageously form bearing surfaces which define a support plane arranged in front of the connecting profiles (in other words, the connecting profiles are arranged set back with respect to the support plane defined by the extra thicknesses of wings material). A lierne can then bear directly on the bearing surfaces formed by the material thicknesses, without being hindered by the connecting profiles.

Brief description of the drawings

• Fig. 1: est une vue d'une paire de poutrelles raccordées au niveau de leurs ailes adjacentes;
• Fig. 2: est une vue d'un rideau de soutènement mixte comprenant deux paires de poutrelles selon la Fig. 1 et une paire de palplanches en forme de Z raccordant les deux paires de poutrelles;
• Fig. 3: est un détail schématique d'une première exécution d'un bout d'aile d'une poutrelle;
• Fig. 4: est un détail schématique d'une deuxième exécution d'un bout d'aile d'une poutrelle;
• Fig. 5: est un détail schématique d'une troisième exécution d'un bout d'aile d'une poutrelle avec une griffe pour y raccorder une palplanche;
• Fig. 6: est un détail schématique montrant le finissage d'un bout d'aile d'une poutrelle avec un bourrelet;
• Fig. 7: est un détail schématique d'une variante de l'exécution de la Fig. 3;
• Fig. 8: est un détail schématique non couvert par les revendications d'un bout d'aile d'une poutrelle avec un raccord soudé muni d'une griffe de palplanche;
• etFig. 9: est un détail schématique d'une variante de l'exécution de la Fig. 3.

Advantageous embodiments of the present invention are described on the basis of the accompanying drawings, in which:

• Fig. 1 : is a view of a pair of connected beams at their adjacent wings;
• Fig. 2 : is a view of a mixed retaining curtain comprising two pairs of beams according to the Fig. 1 and a pair of Z-shaped sheet piles connecting the two pairs of beams;
• Fig. 3 : is a schematic detail of a first execution of a wingtip of a beam;
• Fig. 4 : is a schematic detail of a second execution of a wingtip of a beam;
• Fig. 5 : is a schematic detail of a third execution of a wingtip of a beam with a claw to connect a sheet pile;
• Fig. 6 : is a schematic detail showing the finishing of a wingtip of a beam with a bead;
• Fig. 7 : is a schematic detail of a variant of the execution of the Fig. 3 ;
• Fig. 8 : is a schematic detail not covered by the claims of a wingtip of a beam with a welded connection fitted with a sheet pile claw;
• etFig. 9: is a schematic detail of a variant of the execution of the Fig. 3 .

Description of a preferred execution

The Fig. 1 shows two beams 10, 10 'connected to each other. Such a beam 10, 10 'comprises a core 12, 12' and two wings 14, 16, 14 ', 16'. The web 12, 12 'supports the wings 14, 16, 14', 16 'so that the beam 10, 10' has a section in the form of a Roman numeral I, with a first plane of symmetry consisting of the median plane 11 of the core 12, 12 'and a second plane of symmetry 15 which is perpendicular to the median plane of the core 12, 12'. The height H of the core 12, 12 'is approximately twice the width B of the flange 14, 16, 14', 16 '.

The two beams are connected at their flanges 14, 16, 14 ', 16' using connection profiles 18 known per se, for example using HR fittings marketed by PROFILARBED S.A. (Luxembourg). The wings 14, 16, 14 ', 16' comprise along each longitudinal edge a bead 20, 20 'of substantially triangular section. The connecting section 18 is slid over these longitudinal edges of the wings 14, 16, 14 ', 16', so that the connecting beads 20 engage the lock chambers of the connectors 18. This method of connection is well known and is widely used for the construction of retaining curtains.

On the Fig. 1 , the broken lines 22, 22 'represent the trace of the outer face of the wings of a conventional HZ beam produced by PROFILARBED SA (Luxembourg). It can be seen that in the new beams 10, 10 ', the two wings 14, 16, 14', 16 'are reinforced on the opposite side to the core by a material allowance 24, 26, 24', 26 'which starts only at a certain distance from the edges of the wing. At a certain distance d1 from the edge of the wing, the thickness of the wing gradually increases to reach a maximum value e * at a distance d2 from the edge (d1 <d2). The thickness of the wing 14 then remains equal to e * up to a distance d2 from the opposite edge of the wing, and then decreases symmetrically with respect to the median plane of the core 12, 12 '. The extra thicknesses of material 24, 26, 24 ', 26' thus leave wing tips 21, 21 'having substantially the same thickness e as the wings of a conventional HZ beam. These ends of garlic 21 carry the connecting beads 20, respectively other connecting means (cf. Fig. 5 and 8 ). In the embodiment shown, the thickness e * is about twice the thickness e of the wingtips 21. In practice, this ratio can vary between 1.5 and 4.0. It will however be noted that a thickness e * of the order of 50 mm allows the extra thicknesses 24, 26, 24 ', 26' to define bearing surfaces 27, 29, 27 ', 29' located in front of the profiles. fitting 18. On the Fig. 1 , we thus see a link 31 which bears on the bearing surfaces 29, 29 'without being hindered by the connecting sections 18 connecting the wings 26 and 26'. The thickness e of garlic ends 21 is generally between 10 mm and 25 mm. The ratio between the thickness of the ends of the garments 21 and the thickness of the core 12 is generally between 1.0 and 1.7. A new beam 10, 10 'can easily have a resistance modulus which is at least 50% higher than that of an equivalent conventional HZ beam.

The Fig. 2 shows how two pairs 30, 32 of these beams 10, 10 'can form with a pair 34 of sheet pile Z a mixed retaining wall. Fittings profiles 36, 36 'adapted to connect the sheet piles 34 to the flanges of the beams 30, 32 are for example those marketed by PROFILARBED SA (Luxembourg) under the designation connection RZ-U, respectively RZ-D. We also see that these connections are all slightly set back from the bearing surfaces formed by the extra thickness of material on the flanges of the beams.

The Fig. 3 shows a schematic detail of a first execution of a wingtip of a beam. In particular, it can be seen that the bead 20 has a height h which is smaller than the reinforced thickness e * of the flange 14. It can also be seen that the material allowance 24 begins with a ramp 40. Fig. 4 , the connections of the ramp 40 'and the bead 20 at the wing tip 21 are rounded, as is the connection of the ramp 40' to the bearing surface 27.

The Fig. 5 shows a wing tip 21 of a beam without connecting flange. A connecting section 44 for a sheet pile is welded end to end on the lateral face of the wing tip 21. Note that the butt welding operation would be much more difficult if the wing tip 21 also had the thickness e *.

The Fig. 6 is a schematic detail showing the finishing of a connecting bead 20. At the outlet of the rolling mill, the connecting bead 20 has substantially the same height h * as the thickness e *. A cutting torch 50 then gives the connecting bead 20 its final height h which is smaller than the thickness e * of the reinforced wing. The Fig. 6 shows that the width b of the groove 40 must be such that the flame of the cutting torch 50 can not burn the oblique flank 52 of the excess thickness of material 24.

The execution of Fig. 7 differs from the execution of the Fig. 3 in that the thickness of material 24 is divided in two by a longitudinal groove 60 extending above the core 12. This longitudinal groove 60 facilitates the rolling of the beam because it allows better guidance of the beam in the rolling mill.

The execution of Fig. 8 differs from the execution of the Fig. 5 in that a sheet pile connection 70 is carried by a U-shaped section 72 which is slid over the wing tip 21. This U-shaped section 72 is then fastened to the wing tip 21 by means of two angular welds 74, 74 '.

The Fig. 9 present, as the Fig. 7 , an embodiment in which the thickness of material 24 is divided in two by a longitudinal groove 60 extending above the core 12. This embodiment is distinguished by curved connecting surfaces 80, 82.

Claims (13)

1. A king pile for retaining walls comprising: (a) a rolled beam with a web (12) and two parallel flanges (14, 16) carried by the web (12), said flanges (14, 16) being fitted with connection means along their longitudinal edges, said connection means comprising a connection bulge (20) with a substantially triangular cross-section supported by one of said flange ends (21), and (b) a interlock section (18) slipped onto the longitudinal edge of the flange, in such a way that the connection bulge (20) engages a locking chamber of said interlock section (18); characterized in that said flanges (14, 16) are strengthened, on the side opposite the web (12) over the major part of their width (B), by an extra material thickness (24, 26), which starts only at a certain distance from the longitudinal edges of the flange (14, 16), allowing flange ends (21) of smaller thickness (e) to remain, which carry said connection bulge (20), said extra material thickness (24, 26) of the flange (14, 16) defining a bearing plane (27, 29) located in front of said interlock section (18) slipped onto said longitudinal edge of the flange (14, 16).
2. The king pile as claimed in claim 1, wherein the maximum thickness (e*) of said extra material thickness (24, 26) is greater than the height of said bulge (20).
3. A king pile for retaining walls comprising: (a) a rolled beam with a web (12) and two parallel flanges (14, 16) carried by the web (12); and (b) connection means along the longitudinal edges of said flanges (14, 16); characterized in that said flanges (14, 16) are strengthened, on the side opposite the web (12) over the major part of their width (B), by an extra material thickness (24, 26), which starts only at a certain distance from the longitudinal edges of the flange (14, 16), allowing flange ends (21) of smaller thickness (e) to remain, which carry said connection means (20, 44, 70), and said connection means comprise an interlock section (44) for a sheet pile that is welded end to end on a lateral face of one of said flange ends (21) of smaller thickness.
4. A rolled king pile for retaining walls with a web (12) and two parallel flanges (14, 16) carried by the web (12), said flanges (14, 16) being fitted with connection means (20, 44, 70) along their longitudinal edges, characterized in that said flanges (14, 16) are strengthened, on the side opposite the web (12) over the major part of their width (B), by an extra material thickness (24, 26), which starts only at a certain distance from the longitudinal edges of the flange (14), allowing flange ends (21) of smaller thickness (e) to remain, which carry said connection means (20, 44, 70), and said extra material thickness (24) on a flange (14) is divided in two by a longitudinal groove (60) running above the web (12).
5. The king pile as claimed in any one of the previous claims, wherein said extra material thickness (24, 26) is symmetrical about the midplane (11) of the web (12).
6. The king pile as claimed in any one of the previous claims, wherein the ratio of the thickness (e) of said flange ends (21) to the thickness (s) of the web (12) is between 1.0 and 1.7.
7. The king pile as claimed in any one of the previous claims, wherein the ratio of the maximum thickness (e*) of the flange (14, 16) at said extra material thickness (24, 26) to the thickness (e) of said flange ends (21) is between 1.5 and 4.0.
8. The king pile as claimed in any one of the previous claims, wherein the thickness (e) of said flange ends (21) is between 10mm and 25mm.
9. The king pile as claimed in any one of the previous claims, wherein the maximum thickness (e*) of the flange (14, 16) at said extra material thickness (24, 26) is between 40mm and 60mm.
10. The king pile as claimed in any one of the previous claims, wherein the ratio of the web depth (H) to the flange width (B) is at least equal to 2.
11. A retaining wall in which at least two king piles (10, 10') as claimed in any one of the previous claims are connected at their flanges (14, 16, 14', 16') by interlock sections (18), and said extra material thicknesses (24, 26, 24' , 26') form bearing surfaces (27, 29, 27', 29'), which define a bearing plane located in front of said interlock sections (18).
12. A retaining wall in which at least two king piles (10, 10') are connected at their flanges (14, 16, 14', 16') by interlock sections (18), each of said king piles being a rolled beam with a web (12) and two parallel flanges (14, 16) carried by the web (12), said flanges (14, 16) being fitted with connection means (20, 44, 70) along their longitudinal edges, characterized in that said flanges (14, 16) are strengthened, on the side opposite the web (12) over the major part of their width (B), by an extra material thickness (24, 26), which starts only at a certain distance from the longitudinal edges of the flange (14), allowing flange ends (21) of smaller thickness (e) to remain, which carry said connection means (20, 44, 70), and said extra material thicknesses (24, 26, 24', 26') form bearing surfaces (27, 29, 27', 29'), which define a bearing plane located in front of said interlock sections (18).
13. The retaining wall as claimed in claim 11 or 12, comprising at least one wale (31) bearing on said bearing surfaces (29, 29') formed by said extra material thicknesses (26, 26') in front of said interlock sections (18).

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