WO2008140297A1

WO2008140297A1 - Liquid receiving perforated element and assembly thereof

Info

Publication number: WO2008140297A1
Application number: PCT/NL2007/050608
Authority: WO
Inventors: Hielke Dolf Hoekstra; Martinus Petrus Kruijer; Michael Adrianus Jacobus Schouten
Original assignee: Pipelife Nederland BV
Current assignee: Pipelife Nederland BV
Priority date: 2007-05-09
Filing date: 2007-11-30
Publication date: 2008-11-20
Anticipated expiration: 2009-11-09
Also published as: PT2155975E; EP2155976A1; EP2142714B1; ES2366981T3; EP2142714A1; ES2366982T3; DK2155975T3; RS51617B; WO2008140310A1; ATE510077T1; ATE495317T1; SI2155975T1; HRP20110088T1; NL2000638C2; EP2155975A1; PL2142714T3; SI2155976T1; DE602008004518D1; PL2155975T3; SI2142714T1

Abstract

An element (39) for receiving a liquid, such as water, comprises a housing with perforated side walls (1, 2) and a panel (3) which extends between said side walls (1, 2). A channel (6-10) extends through said housing, said channel (6-10) being defined by at least one perforated (3) or open side and both ends of the channel (6-10) emanating outside the housing. At least one further channel (6-10) is provided which is delimited by at least one perforated (3) or open side, both ends of said further channel (6-10) emanating outside the housing as well. Said channels (6-10) intersect and/or cross each other so as to provide improved accessibility an visibility.

Description

Liquid receiving perforated element and assembly thereof

The invention is related to an element for receiving a liquid, such as water, comprising a housing with perforated side walls and a panel which extends between said side walls, a channel extending through said housing, said channel being defined by at least one perforated or open side and both ends of the channel emanating outside the housing. Such elements are usually joined into a larger system which preferably is located underground. The elements provide the possibility to collect and store large amounts of water, such as for instance occur as a result of heavy rain fall and the like. The storage capacity thus obtained provides a temporary relief for the surface and underground, in such a way that flooding and erosion can be prevented or at least mitigated. The water collected in the elements may subsequently be released in a controlled manner, whereby a buffer function is obtained. The release may be carried out in several ways, such as discharge through a sewer, by means of infiltration into the underground etc.

An element of this type is disclosed in EP-A- 1.260.640. Said prior art element has a single channel with fairly large cross-sections which extends from one end of the element to the opposite end. A series of such elements which are arranged behind one another provides an elongate through going channel, through which inspection and cleaning tools can be moved. Although the dimensions of said channel do enable the displacement of tools, nevertheless the flexibility concerning the path to be followed is limited. In fact the channel enables a mere rectilinear movement, whereby the accessibility of the system is poor.

A further element is disclosed in EP -A-1.854.928. Said prior art element is block shaped and has two relatively large diameter, parallel channels therein. The purpose of these channels is to provide the possibility to inspect the element with respect to soiling, and to carry out a cleaning operation. Soiling may occur in case the water collected is stagnant for some time, which promotes the formation of deposits within the elements. A large amount of deposit collected within the elements goes at the expense of the storage capacity, for which reason the inspection and cleaning operations may be carried out from time to time.

The parallel channels are interconnected through transverse openings, which also allow the passage of inspection respectively cleaning equipment. Several of the elements may be arranged according to different orientations, in which case the through going channel, as formed by the differently oriented element channels, has an intricate shape with angles and differently oriented passages. Although thereby it becomes possible to inspect the elements in a more flexible way and from different angles, nevertheless this layout has disadvantages concerning the traffic of the tools through the system, which tools will have to follow such intricate path precisely. Furthermore, the overall visibility of the internal spaces of the system is impaired by the tortuous shape of the channels.

The object of the invention is therefore to provide an element of the type described before which is more versatile as to the internal accessibility of the open spaces. This object is achieved in that at least one further channel is provided which is delimited by at least one perforated or open side, in that both ends of said further channel emanate outside the housing and in that said channels intersect and/or cross each other. The element preferably has at least four side walls. The element may have a parallelepiped shape, although other shapes such as tetrahedral are possible as well.

The element according to the invention has specifically oriented channels, which are not parallel to each other. The different orientations thus obtained allow a more flexible way of approaching the internal space of the element and of the system obtained by joining a plurality of such elements together. In the first place, it is possible to inspect or clean according to a first direction, preferably rectilinear, as dictated by the orientation of a first channel. However, unlike the possibilities offered by the prior art elements, according to a second possibility access can now also be obtained from a second, different general direction which is at an angle with the other direction(s). Thus, without manipulating the tools for the purpose of making these turn around corners in the interior of the element, a further inspection or cleaning is possible so as to cover parts of the system which would be difficult to reach from the first direction. Thirdly, and added to these general directions, it remains of course possible to make the tools deviate from the general main directions, and to steer them from the one direction into another direction at the crossings of the channels. In this way, by selecting a specific internal layout of the elements, the accessibility of the internal spaces is greatly improved.

The angular orientations of the several channels may be selected as is best suited for the purpose to be obtained. Generally speaking however, the accessibility of the internal space of the elements is benefitted best in case at least two channels are oriented perpendicularly with respect to each other. Even better results are obtained in case three channels are provided which are oriented perpendicularly with respect to each other. Such three channels may intersect each other in pairs, however according to a relatively simple embodiment which offers excellent inspection and cleaning properties, the three channels have a single common intersection.

The orientation of the channels with respect to the side walls and the panel may be selected at will as well, keeping in mind the goal to be achieved. According to a relatively simple embodiment, at least one of the channels is oriented perpendicular with respect to a side wall. However, other orientations at an angle different from a right angle are also possible. Similarly, preferable but not necessarily, at least one of the channels is oriented perpendicular with respect to the panel.

One side of the channels is perforated, and is e.g. delimited by a perforated wall. For instance, the channels may be bound by the perforated panel. The other sides of the channel may be carried out in such manner as well. However, according to a preferred embodiment which combines high structural integrity with good inspection and cleaning properties, a plurality of columns is provided which are oriented transversely with respect to the panel, in such a way that the channels are defined between the columns. In particular, the columns may be arranged parallel at a distance from each other according to rows, at least one channel being oriented according to and between two pairs of rows of columns. In particular, the channel may thus be bound, at three sides, by the panel as well as by the two rows of columns.

The tools for inspection and cleaning are now to be guided by the rows of columns, which at the same time provide the element with a high strength and stiffness and resistance against compressive forces exerted thereon by the soil and e.g. over- rolling traffic. Moreover, the spaces between the columns allow ample room for viewing the more remote areas. This layout of the columns is in particular suitable for horizontally oriented inspection channels. However, also vertically oriented channels may be defined by means of columns, in which case said columns are arranged around an end of the channel emanating outside the housing, the vertical channel then extending parallel to the length direction of said columns. The vertical channel in question is bound by the open sides and/or by the columns which enclose the open sides. As has been discussed before, numerous combinations of channels intersecting or crossing each other at various angles are possible within the framework of the invention. According to a preferred one of these embodiments, a set of three channels is provided, two of said channels forming a pair the channels of which are oriented perpendicular with respect to each other and according to and between two respective pairs of rows of columns, the third channel of said set being oriented perpendicular with respect to the pair of channels and according to the length direction of the columns which are at the intersection of the pair of channels.

The columns may have connecting parts at both ends for interconnecting aligned columns of a stack of elements. The side walls may extend at one and only one side of the panel. The columns and the side walls may extend on one and the same side of the panel. The panel may be perforated.

The invention is furthermore related to an assembly, comprising a plurality of elements as described before and being delimited by assembly sides, said elements being arranged next to and on top of each other, wherein at least one through going assembly channel is present, said through going assembly channel being formed of a series of aligned channels each contained in an element and emanating at opposite assembly sides.

Preferably, at least two through going assembly channels are present which cross or intersect each other. At least one through going assembly channel may be oriented vertically and vertically only. Such layout makes it possible to insert tools from above into the assembly, and to make these tools move downward into the assembly in a simple manner. Preferable, at least one through going assembly channel is oriented horizontally and horizontally only. Here as well a simple rectilinear movement of the tools into the assembly is made possible. The accessibility of the assembly is further enhanced in case at least one of the through going assembly channels emanates at opposite assembly sides.

The invention will now be described further with respect to an embodiment shown in the drawings. Figure 1 shows a view in perspective of the bottom of an element according to the invention.

Figure 2 shows a view in perspective on the top of the element according to figure 1. Figure 3 shows a bottom view of the element. Figure 4 shows a view on a long side of the element. Figure 5 shows a view on a short side of the element.

Figure 6 shows a cross-section through two elements stacked upon each other. Figure 7 shows a view in perspective of an assembly of elements according to the preceding figures.

Figure 8 shows a side view of the assembly of figure 7. Figure 9 shows a view in perspective of an alternative assembly. The element 39 as shown in figures 1-6 according to the invention comprises two long side walls 1, two short side walls 2, as well as a panel 3. The element has an open side which is bordered by the edge of the side walls 1 , 2 which is remote from the panel 3. Thus, the element according to the invention can be stated to have the form of an open box. In use, the open side of the box is facing downwardly, as shown in the figures 2 and 4. This orientation of the box will become more apparent from the description of the assembly of figures 7 and 8, below.

The panel 3 has a length which is twice the width thereof. As a result, two square panel halves 4, 5 have been obtained. An edge area 24 extends around these panel halves 4,5. The panel halves 4, 5 define a partition line 37, which is continued in the partition lines 38 in the long walls 1. It will however be clear that the invention is not limited to this specific layout; it is also possible to select a different length-width relationship. Also, it is possible to leave away the partition lines 18, 19.

In the embodiment shown, the short side walls 2 have opposite openings 11 , between which the horizontal channel 6 extends. This horizontal channel has been indicated merely by means of a dotted line, which represents the imaginary axis of this channel. Furthermore, the long side walls 1 each comprise pairs of opposite openings 12, 13, which define the channels 7 respectively 8. The panel 3 has two openings 14, 15, which define the respective vertical channels 9, 10. These openings 11-15 play a role for giving access to a specific tool 40 such as for inspection purposes for cleaning purposes. The expression "channel" as used before should be understood to encompass any free trajectory which extends from a respective opening in one of the side walls towards an opposite opening in a respective opposite side wall, or any free trajectory which extends from an opening in the panel towards the open side. A free trajectory should be understood to represent a trajectory which can be negotiated by a tool, such as for inspection cleaning.

In the embodiment shown, the channels in question are delimited by means of columns 16. In particular, the horizontal channel 6 is delimited by means of the panel 3 as well as by means of the two opposite the rows 17 of columns, which extend according to the longitudinal direction of the element. Similarly, the horizontal channels 7, 8 are delimited each by the panel 3 as well as by means of a pair of rows 18 of columns. Finally, the vertical channels 9, 10 are delimited by the specific columns 16' and the open sides enclosed between said columns 16' which surround said openings 14,15 in such a way that said vertical channels 9, 10 extend according to the longitudinal direction of said columns 16'.

The side walls 1, 2 and the panel 3 are each perforated, and comprise holes 19 which are surrounded by bars 20. Furthermore, stiffening ribs 21 are provided on the inner surface of the panel 3. As is also clearly shown in the cross-section of figure 6, the free end of the columns 16 have notches 22, while at the location of each column the outer surface of the panel 3 comprise pockets 23. Thus, by stacking the elements onto each other in such a way that the notches 22 of an upper element are made to engage the pockets 23 of a lower element, a stable usual position is obtained. In fact, the interconnected columns 16 of a stack of elements provides stable and stiff column supports for the full stack. It is does not necessary to carry out the side walls 1 , 2 as load-bearing elements, although it is quite well possible in addition to, or instead of, these columns.

The openings 11-15 each have a certain size, and can be enlarged by removing the breakaway parts 36, which can for instance be made possible by nominal weak places or other frangible parts. Thereby, the openings 11-15 can be tuned to the size of pipes to be connected for e.g. feeding water into the element, or for draining water there from. Furthermore, these openings 11-15 play a role for giving access to a specific tool 40 such as for inspection purposes for cleaning purposes. These tools 40 are supported on the panel 3 of a lower element, as for instance shown in figure 6. Said tool 40 has to travel past the adjoining openings of neighbouring elements, and to that end it is important that the wall parts of the side walls 1, 2 do not form a threshold which is difficult to cross. In order to achieve that, the openings 11-13 have been positioned as close as possible to the free edge of the side walls 1, 2, that is closer to said free edge then to the panel 3 of the element in question. As shown in figure 4, the fairly low position of the openings 11-13 does indeed has the advantage that the tool 40 in question does not experience a threshold whatsoever when traveling through the elements. The element according to the invention can be used for providing an underground water storage facility, as for instance shown in figures 7 and 8. In this example, numerous elements are stacked upon and next to each other, thus forming stacks 25, longitudinal rows 26 and transverse rows 27. The facility is usually accommodated beneath the ground surface 28, were by pipelines 29 may be connected to any of the openings 11-15 for feeding water into the assembly. Similarly, infiltration lines 30 and the like may be connected to these openings 11-15 so as to infiltrate the water, from the assembly, into the underground. In fact, numerous configurations are possible, but in figures 7 and 8 only show a specific one.

By providing suitable exits to the assembly, it is principally possible to access the assembly from several directions. This is made possible by the fact that the aligned channels 6-10 of the elements together constitute through going assembly channels which cross the full height, width or longitudinal dimension of the assembly. In figures 7 and 8, only three of these through going assembly channels have been shown, but it will be clear that any aligned set of channels 6-10 in principle constitutes a through going assembly channel.

In figure 7, the axis 31 of a longitudinally extending through going assembly channel is shown, as well as the axis 32 of the transversely extending through going assembly channel together with the axis 33 of vertically extending through going assembly channel. In case for instance the vertically extending through going assembly channel is selected for gaining access to the assembly, a manhole 34 with a cover 35 can be applied. The vertically extending through going assembly channel in question opens out into the manhole, in such a way that for instance an inspection camera or cleaning tool can be inserted. The camera or tool in question comes across several horizontally extending assembly channels 31, 32 as well, which makes inspection quite efficient. If necessary, the camera or tool can be deviated from the vertical path as defined by the vertically extending through going assembly channel, and be redirected through the horizontally extending through going assembly channel. Although in figure 8 only a single access is via our the manhole 34 has been shown, it will be clear that points of access can be applied as well, for instance from the side of the assembly.

In the embodiments shown, the channels 6-10 intersect each other, or are parallel. However, instead of intersecting channels, also channels can be applied which cross each other. Such channels are not parallel; they do run at an angle with respect to each other, but are lying in different parallel planes. For instance, this can be obtained by shifting the openings 11 of the horizontal channel 6 closer to the panel 3. In the position of figure 2, this would mean that the horizontal channel 6 runs over the horizontal channels 7, 8.

The embodiment of figure 9 shows an alternative assembly according to which the longitudinal direction of some top elements is oriented transversely with respect to the longitudinal direction of the other elements and the lower elements. In this case, the longitudinally extending through going assembly channel 31 is made up of a combination of the horizontal channels 6, 7 (or 6, 8). This is made possible due to the central location of the channels 6, 7 and 8 with respect to the element halves concerned. This way of assembling the elements has the advantage that the internal coherence of the system is enhanced, as neighbouring stacks of elements are interconnected thereby. Of course, the embodiment of figure 9 gives only one example of various interconnecting lay outs; for instance the elements may also be stacked brick-wise according to their longitudinal direction.

List of reference numbers

1. Long side wall

2. Short side wall 3. Panel

4. Panel half

5. Panel half

6. Horizontal channel

7. Horizontal channel 8. Horizontal channel

9. Vertical channel

10. Vertical channel

11. Opening channel 6

12. Opening channel 7 13. Opening channel 8

14. Opening channel 9

15. Opening channel 10

16. lό'.Column

17. Longitudinal row of columns 18. Transverse row of columns

19. Hole

20. Bar

21. Rib

22. Notch 23. Pocket

24. Edge area

25. Stack of elements

26. Longitudinal row o f elements

27. Transverse row of elements 28. Ground surface

29. Feed pipeline

30. Infiltration line

31. Longitudinally extending through going assembly channel 32. Transversely extending through going assembly channel

33. Vertically extending through going assembly channel

34. Manhole

35. Cover 36. Breakaway part of openings

37. Partition line

38. Partition line

39. Box shaped element

40. Tool

Claims

1. Element (39) for receiving a liquid, such as water, comprising a housing with perforated side walls (1, 2) and a panel (3) which extends between said side walls (1, 2), a channel (6-10) extending through said housing, said channel (6-10) being defined by at least one perforated (3) or open side and both ends of the channel (6-10) emanating outside the housing, characterised in that at least one further channel (6-10) is provided which is delimited by at least one perforated (3) or open side, in that both ends of said further channel (6-10) emanate outside the housing and in that said channels (6-10) intersect and/or cross each other.

2. Element according to claim 1, wherein at least two channels (6-10) are oriented perpendicularly with respect to each other.

3. Element according to claim 1 or 2, wherein three channels (6-10) are provided which are oriented perpendicularly with respect to each other.

4. Element according to claim 3, wherein the three channels (6-10) have a single common intersection.

5. Element according to any of the preceding claims, wherein at least one of the channels (6-8) is oriented perpendicular with respect to a side wall (1,2).

6. Element according to any of the preceding claims, wherein at least one of the channels (9,10) is oriented perpendicular with respect to the panel (3).

7. Element according any of the preceding claims, wherein the panel (3) is rectangular or square, the side walls (1,2) extending perpendicularly with respect to the panel (3).

8. Element according to any of the preceding claims, wherein a plurality of columns (16) is provided which are oriented transversely with respect to the panel (3).

9. Element according to claim 8, wherein the channels (6-10) are defined between the columns (16).

10. Element according to claim 9, wherein the columns (16) are arranged parallel at a distance from each other according to rows (17, 18), at least one channel (6-8) being oriented according to and between two pairs of rows (17, 18) of columns (16.

11. Element according to claim 9 or 10, wherein the columns (16') are arranged around an end of the channel (9, 10) emanating outside the housing, said channel (9, 10) extending parallel to the length direction of said columns (16').

12. Element according to claims 10 and 11 wherein a set of three channels (6, 8, 9; 6, 7, 10) is provided, two of said channels (6, 8; 6, 7) forming a pair the channels of which are oriented perpendicular with respect to each other and according to and between two respective pairs of rows (17, 18) of columns (16), the third channel 9; 10) of said set being oriented perpendicular with respect to the pair of channels (6, 8; 6, 7) and according to the length direction of the columns (16') which are at the intersection of the pair of channels.

13. Element according to claim 12, wherein the panel (3) comprises two square panel halves (4, 5) which define two element halves, each element half comprising a set of three channels (6, 8, 9; 6, 7, 10).

14. Element according to claim 13, wherein the element halves (4, 5) are symmetric with respect to each other.

15. Element according to any of claims 8-14, wherein the columns (16) have connecting parts (22, 23) at both ends for interconnecting aligned columns (16) of a stack of elements.

16. Element according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the side walls (1, 2) extend at one and only one side of the panel (3).

17. Element according to claim 16 when dependent on any of claims 8-15, wherein the columns (16) and the side walls (1, 2) extend on one and the same side of the panel (3).

18. Element according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the panel (3) is perforated.

19. Assembly, comprising a plurality of elements according to any of the preceding claims and being delimited by assembly sides, said elements being arranged next to and on top of each other, wherein at least one through going assembly channel (31-33) is present, said through going assembly channel being formed of a series of aligned channels (6-10) each contained in an element and emanating at opposite assembly sides.

20. Assembly according to claim 19, wherein at least two through going assembly channels (31-33) are present which cross or intersect each other.

21. Assembly according to claim 19 or 20, wherein at least one through going assembly channel (33) is oriented vertically and vertically only.

22. Assembly according to any of claims 19-21, wherein at least one through going assembly channel (31, 32) is oriented horizontally and horizontally only.

23. Assembly according to any of claims 19-22, wherein at least one of the through going assembly channels (31-33) emanates at opposite assembly sides.

24. Assembly according to any of the preceding claims, wherein at least one of the through going assembly channels (31-33) is rectilinear and rectilinear only.