Earthquake-resistant structure

Abstract

The invention relates to an earthquake-resistant structure, applicable in the construction industry, which comprises: a foundation (1), in the form of a ditch, provided with a base (11) and side walls (12); a building floor (2) comprising a floating slab (21) and side partitions (22) spaced from the base (11) and the side walls (12) of the foundation (1), respectively; dampers (3) arranged between the foundation (1) and the floor (2) of the building, which comprise helical springs (31) on which the floating slab (21) of the floor is supported by means of an elevation mechanism (32) for elevating the floating slab (21); and limiters (4) for limiting the horizontal movement of the floor (2), which comprise elastic elements (41) disposed around a column (42) attached to the foundation (1) and accommodated in holes in the floating slab (21) of the floor.

Description

[0001] DESCRIPTION

[0002] An anti-seismic structure.

[0003] Technical sector.

[0004] The present invention relates to an anti-seismic structure, applicable in the construction sector, and comprising: a foundation, in the form of a pit, provided with a base and side walls; a building floor, comprising a floating slab of reinforced concrete and side walls spaced respectively from the base and the side walls of the foundation, and damping devices, arranged between the foundation and the building floor; said damping devices comprising vertically oriented helical springs, on which the floating slab of the floor is supported by means of a lifting mechanism for said floating slab.

[0005] The seismic structure includes devices that limit the horizontal movements of the slab relative to the foundation; and, if necessary, in combination with said limiting devices, second elements that absorb said horizontal movements.

[0006] State of the art

[0007] In the state of the art, it is worth mentioning the existence of European patent EP 2 202 367, from the same applicant of the present invention, which describes a device for the placement of floating slabs of reinforced concrete, which is integrated into the framework of the floating slab and which has a helical damping element, oriented vertically, for the support of said floating slab on a foundation, and a lifting mechanism that acts on the corresponding damping element.

[0008] A variable number of devices are integrated into the floating slab, conveniently distributed, so that when the respective lifting mechanisms are activated, the floating slab rises and is supported on the foundation by means of the damping elements.

[0009] This background focuses on the cube shape of the device that is integrated into the slab and the arrangement on the sides of the same of horizontal tubes suitable for the introduction of fixing rods to the reinforcements of said floating slab.

[0010] In the operating position, that is, once the floating slab has set and been raised, it is supported on the foundation by means of helical dampers.

[0011] Other devices for supporting and damping floating slabs or floors, mentioned in said European patent EP 2 202 367, are described in documents FR 2 682 412 which has helical spring boxes and DE 4 012 493 which, instead of helical springs, uses pneumatically actuated bellows.

[0012] The use of devices integrated into the floating slab and provided with damping elements consisting of helical springs, intended to support the floating slab and keep it vertically distanced from the foundation, provides a limited capacity for damping seismic movements with both horizontal and vertical force components.

[0013] Explanation of the invention.

[0014] The anti-seismic structure object of the invention is applicable in the construction sector and has technical characteristics that substantially improve the damping of seismic movements and the behavior of the structure against said seismic movements.

[0015] This anti-seismic structure is of the type described in the preamble to the main claim and comprises a foundation, in the form of a pit, provided with a base and side walls; a building slab, comprising a floating slab of reinforced concrete and side walls spaced respectively from the base and the side walls of the foundation; and seismic force-damping devices arranged between the foundation and the building slab; said damping devices comprising vertically oriented helical springs on which the floating slab of the slab is supported by means of a floating slab lifting mechanism.

[0016] This anti-seismic structure combines the aforementioned damping elements of support and elevation of the floating slab with elements that limit the horizontal movements of the slab relative to the foundation, creating synergies that contribute to substantially improving the damping of seismic movements and the behavior of the structure in response to said seismic movements.

[0017] According to the invention, the floating slab of the slab comprises vertical through holes in which devices are housed to limit and dampen the horizontal movements of the slab relative to the foundation; said horizontal movement limiting devices comprise elastic elements arranged around a column anchored to the base of the foundation, fixed to said column and facing the side walls of the corresponding vertical hole (of the slab).

[0018] It is worth mentioning that the aforementioned elastic elements can be elastic metal cushions, springs, rubber pads or any other elements with elastic properties.

[0019] In the event of a seismic movement, the elastic elements initially collaborate with the helical springs to absorb horizontal movements, compressing laterally against the columns anchored to the base of the foundation, limiting the possibility of horizontal movement of the slab relative to the foundation.

[0020] This limitation of the horizontal movement amplitude of the slab relative to the foundation, caused by the elastic elements and their supporting columns, in addition to the helical springs contributing to the damping of said movements, prevents said helical springs from suffering unlimited horizontal stress and from being damaged or allowing a lateral displacement of the slab, which would be detrimental to the entire anti-seismic structure.

[0021] In this invention, it has been planned that the anti-seismic structure can incorporate second elements that absorb horizontal movements of the slab, arranged between the side walls of the foundation and extensions that protrude laterally from the floating slab and the side walls of the slab.

[0022] Brief description of the content of the drawings.

[0023] To complement the description being made and in order to facilitate the understanding of the characteristics of the invention, a set of drawings is attached to this specification in which, for illustrative and non-limiting purposes, the following has been represented:

[0024] Figure 1 shows an elevation view of an embodiment of the anti-seismic structure object of the invention, with the floor of a building supported on a foundation by means of damping devices, and with devices limiting and damping the horizontal movements of the floor with respect to the foundation.

[0025] Figure 2 shows a bottom plan view of the slab, in which an example of the distribution of the damping devices and the limiting and damping devices for the horizontal displacements of said slab relative to the foundation can be seen.

[0026] Figure 3 shows an enlarged view sectioned by a vertical plane of the detail.

[0027] (A) shown in Figure 1, and in which one of the damping and support devices of the slab on the foundation can be observed.

[0028] Figure 4 shows a top plan view of the damping device of Figure 3.

[0029] Figure 5 shows an enlarged view, sectioned by a vertical plane, of the detail.

[0030] (B) shown in Figure 1, and in which one can see one of the limiting and damping devices for horizontal movements of the slab, housed in a vertical gap through the floating slab of the slab, provided with elastic elements, constituted in this embodiment by elastic metal cushions, fixed around a column anchored to the foundation and which in this example has a single-piece body.

[0031] Figures 6 and 7 show respectively a perspective view and a top plan view of the horizontal movement limiting and damping device of Figure 5.

[0032] Figure 8 shows a view similar to Figure 5, of a variant of the embodiment of the horizontal movement limiting and damping device in which the column comprises a lower section, carrying the anchoring foot to the foundation, and a removable upper section to which the elastic metal cushions are laterally fixed.

[0033] Figure 9 shows an enlarged view of the detail (C) indicated in Figure 1 and in which an example of the realization of second horizontal movement damping elements has been represented, which, as shown in Figure 1, are arranged between lateral extensions of the slab and the lateral walls of the foundation.

[0034] Figure 10 shows a plan view of the second horizontal motion damping elements of Figure 9.

[0035] Detailed exposition of embodiments of the invention.

[0036] The anti-seismic structure shown in Figure 1 comprises a foundation (1), in the form of a pit, provided with a base (11) and side walls (12), and a building floor (2) comprising a floating slab (21) and side walls (22), spaced respectively from the base (11) and the side walls (12) of the foundation (1).

[0037] The anti-seismic structure comprises damping devices (3) arranged between the foundation (1) and the slab (2), responsible for supporting the weight of the entire building.

[0038] As shown in Figure 2, these damping devices (3), as well as limiting devices (4) and horizontal movement dampers that will be described later, are conveniently distributed on the surface of the floating slab (21).

[0039] In the embodiment shown in Figures 3 and 4, the damping devices (3) comprise a helical spring (31), oriented vertically, on which the floating slab (21) is supported by means of a lifting mechanism (32) of said floating slab (21).

[0040] Said lifting mechanism (32) is mounted on a metal cube (33) that is fixed to the reinforcement (23) of the floating slab (21), prior to pouring the concrete forming said floating slab (21) so that, once the concrete has set, said metal cube (33) is embedded in said floating slab (21) delimiting therein a vertical hole where the helical spring (31) is located with its lifting mechanism (32).

[0041] The metal cube (33) has oblique stops (34) on top, in two opposite corners, that define a gap of sufficient width for the introduction of the helical spring (31) and the lifting mechanism (32) of the floating slab (21) into its interior.

[0042] This lifting mechanism (32) of the floating slab (21) comprises a screw (35) for tightening the helical spring (31), threaded onto a crossbar (36) whose ends are arranged, by means of a horizontal turning movement, below the aforementioned oblique stops (34).

[0043] By actuating the lifting mechanism (32) of the damping devices (3), the floating slab (21) is lifted, which is supported on the base (11) of the foundation (1) by means of the helical springs (31).

[0044] The floating slab (21) of the slab (2) additionally comprises vertical passing holes (24) in which the limiting devices (4) and dampers of horizontal movements of the slab (2) with respect to the foundation (1) are housed.

[0045] Said horizontal movement limiting devices (4) comprise, as shown in Figures 5 to 8, elastic elements (41), constituted in this example by elastic metal cushions, arranged around a column (42) anchored to the base (11) of the foundation (1), fixed to said column (42) by means of screws, and facing the side walls of the corresponding vertical gap (24) of the floating slab (21). Preferably, as shown in the embodiment example, the column will be prismatic, with an elastic element (41) being positioned on each of its sides.

[0046] In the embodiment shown in Figure 5, the side walls of the vertical gaps in the floating slab (21) are made up of a metal box (43) open at the upper and lower ends and fixed to the reinforcement (23) of said floating slab (21) prior to pouring the concrete forming said floating slab (21), in a manner similar to the metal cubes (33) of the damping devices (3), so that once the concrete has set, both the metal cubes and the metal boxes (43), which are also prismatic, are embedded in the floating slab (21).

[0047] The metal cubes (33) and the metal boxes (43) have the same height and, once fixed to the reinforcement (23), the concrete is poured over the reinforcement (23) until reaching the same height as the cubes and the metal boxes; in this way, once the concrete has set, both the metal cubes (33) and the metal boxes (43) are embedded and flush with the upper and lower surfaces of the floating slab (21).

[0048] Figure 5 to 8 shows one of the horizontal movement limiting devices (4) and the corresponding metal box (43).

[0049] The columns (42) of the horizontal movement limiting devices (4) comprise a foot (44) supporting the base (11) of the foundation and anchoring screws (45) to the foundation (1), said anchoring screws being accessible from the inside of the vertical gaps (24) of the floating slab (21) of the slab, in this case of the metal box (43) that forms the side walls of said vertical gaps (24).

[0050] In the embodiment shown in figures 5 to 7, the columns (42) have a single-piece body and the elastic elements (41) are fixed laterally, by means of screws, to an area close to the upper end of each side of said columns (42).

[0051] In this embodiment, the assembly and tightening of the anchor bolts (45) of the foot (44) to the base (11) of the foundation must be carried out through the spaces between the elastic elements (41), visible in figure 7, which may cause some discomfort due to the limitation of the access space.

[0052] To facilitate this access, the invention contemplates a variant of the embodiment shown in Figure 8, in which the column (42) does not have a single-piece body, but rather comprises: a lower section (42a) carrying the foot (44), an upper section (42b), removable, to which the elastic elements (41) are laterally fixed, and at least one screw or fixing element (46) of the upper section (42b) to the lower section (42a), once the anchoring screws (45) of the foot (44) have been fixed to the base of the foundation.

[0053] In the embodiment shown in Figure 1, the floating slab (21) and the side walls (22) of the slab (2) comprise extensions (25) that project laterally from the floating slab (21) and the side walls (22) of the slab (2) towards the side walls (12) of the foundation (1), and second damping elements (5) of horizontal movements of the slab, arranged between the side walls (12) of the foundation and said extensions (25) of the slab. Figures 9 and 10 show an example of the embodiment of said second damping elements (5) of horizontal movements, which comprise helical cables (51), whose coils are fixed by diametrically opposite areas to parallel plates (52), forming contact surfaces with the side walls (12) of the foundation and with the extensions (25) of the floating slab (21) and the side walls (22) of the slab.

[0054] In this embodiment, the second horizontal movement damping elements (5) comprise at least one elastic element (53) between the parallel plates (52). This elastic element (53) may also consist of an elastic metal cushion, a rubber pad, a spring or any other element or material with elastic properties.

[0055] Once the nature of the invention has been sufficiently described, as well as a preferred embodiment example, it is stated for the appropriate purposes that the materials, shape, size and arrangement of the elements described may be modified, provided that this does not imply an alteration of the essential characteristics of the invention claimed below.

Claims

CLAIMS 1. An anti-seismic structure, applicable in the construction sector, comprising: a foundation (1), in the form of a pit, provided with a base (11) and side walls (12); a building floor (2) comprising a floating slab (21) and side walls (22) spaced respectively from the base (11) and the side walls (12) of the foundation (1), and shock-absorbing devices (3) against seismic forces, arranged between the foundation (1) and the floor (2) of the building; said shock-absorbing devices (3) comprising vertically oriented helical springs (31), on which the floating slab (21) of the floor is supported by means of a lifting mechanism (32) of said floating slab (21);characterized in that the floating slab (21) of the slab comprises vertical through holes (24) in which limiting devices (4) and dampers of the horizontal movements of the slab (2) with respect to the foundation (1) are housed; said limiting devices (4) of horizontal movements comprising elastic elements (41) arranged around a column (42) anchored to the base (11) of the foundation (1), fixed to said column (42) and facing the side walls of the corresponding vertical hole (24) of the slab (2).

2. The anti-seismic structure according to claim 1, wherein the side walls of the vertical gaps (24) of the floating slab (21) are made up of a metal box (43) open at the upper and lower ends and fixed to a frame (23) of said floating slab (21).

3. The anti-seismic structure, according to any of claims 1 and 2, wherein the columns (42) comprise a foot (44) supporting the base (11) of the foundation (1) and anchoring screws (45) of the foot (44) to the foundation (1), said anchoring screws (45) being accessible through the interior of the vertical gaps (24) of the floating slab (21) of the floor (2).

4. The anti-seismic structure according to claim 3, wherein the columns (42) have a single-piece body and the elastic elements (41) are fixed laterally to an area close to the upper end of said columns (42).

5. The anti-seismic structure according to claim 3, wherein the columns (42) comprise: a lower section (42a) carrying the foot (44), an upper section (42b), removable, to which the elastic elements (41) and at least one screw or fixing element (46) of the upper section (42b) are laterally fixed to the lower section (42a) once the anchoring screws (45) of the foot (44) have been fixed to the base (11) of the foundation (1).

6. The anti-seismic structure, according to claim 1, comprising second damping elements (5) of horizontal movements, arranged between the side walls (12) of the foundation and extensions (25) that protrude laterally from the floating slab and the side walls of the slab.

7. The anti-seismic structure, according to claim 6, in which the second damping elements (5) of horizontal movements comprise helical cables (51), the coils of which are fixed by diametrically opposite zones to two parallel plates (52), forming two contact surfaces with the side walls (12) of the foundation (1) and with the extensions (25) of the floating slab (21) and the side walls (22) of the slab.

8. The anti-seismic structure according to claim 7, wherein the second horizontal movement damping elements (5) comprise at least one elastic element (53) between the parallel plates (52).

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