150 results about "Uplift force" patented technology

A barrier, such as a PV module, is secured to a base by a support to create a shingle assembly with a venting region defined between the barrier and base for temperature regulation. The first edge of one base may be interengageable with the second edge of an adjacent base to be capable of resisting first and second disengaging forces oriented perpendicular to the edges and along planes oriented parallel to and perpendicular to the base. A deflector may be used to help reduce wind uplift forces.

Methods and apparatus for providing an adjustable balancing force are provided. This mechanism can be used as a lifting force, a counter balancing mechanism or as a horizontal or other force mechanism. A stand in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present invention comprises a first component that is slidingly coupled to a second component. A spring mechanism provides a balancing force between the first component and the second component. In some advantageous embodiments of the present invention, the magnitude of the balancing force is substantially equal to a first load. In some advantageous embodiments, a friction force is provided for resisting relative movement between the first component and the second component.

Rectangular PV modules (6) are mounted on a building roof (4) by mounting stands that are distributed in rows and columns. Each stand comprises a base plate (10) that rests on the building roof (4) and first and second brackets (12, 14) of different height attached to opposite ends of the base plate (10). Each bracket (12, 14) has dual members for supporting two different PV modules (6), and each PV module (6) has a mounting pin (84) adjacent to each of its four corners. Each module (6) is supported by attachment of two of its mounting pins (84) to different first brackets (12), whereby the modules (6) and their supporting stands are able to resist uplift forces resulting from high velocity winds without the base plates (10) being physically attached to the supporting roof structure (4). Preferably the second brackets (14) have a telescoping construction that permits their effective height to vary from less than to substantially the same as that of the first brackets (12).

An apparatus and method for attaching photovoltaic solar panels to a roof system surface. Thin film flexible panels are attached using a hook and loop system in which either the hook or loop material is attached to the underside of panel, and the other of the hook and loop material is attached the roof. Solar panels that are encased in a frame are attached using the hook and loop material directly to the roof system structure, or to an intermediate structure, which is in turn attached to the roof system surface. The method also determines the amount of mated hook and loop material that must be attached to each installed panel to ensure that the installed panels will be able to withstand the wind pressure uplift force required, and to ensure that in the event unexpected and exceessive uplift force is ever encountered, the panels separate at the hook and loop interface

A building roof tie for attaching roof trusses and rafters to wood top plates in building structures, such roof tie having a sheet metal body with risers and a bridge for overlapping a rafter and flaps for wrapping on the sides of the top plate. A generally triangular shaped reinforcing wing provides strength and stability, and can also provide additional hold-down strength, allowing the roof tie to be manufactured from different weights of steel. Turnbuckles attached to the bridge provide additional hold-down strength against increased uplift forces. The roof ties are pitched to conform to a variety of framing applications. A plurality of apertures is formed in the roof tie to provide openings for fasteners for connecting the tie to the wood top plate and rafter.

The present invention provides a device for converting wind flow energy into mechanical energy, comprising a wind-engaging member having an aerodynamic profile which generates an uplift force in the direction of a load cable when the airflow direction is perpendicular to the load cable, a steering mechanism configured to produce a steered movement about a first axis or in a first direction of the wind-engaging member and about a second axis or in a second direction that is different from the first direction or axis of the wind-engaging member, relative to the airflow direction, and a control unit configured to use the steering mechanism to move the wind-engaging member along a predetermined flight path in a flight plane perpendicular to the load cable. The present invention further provides a method for converting wind flow energy into mechanical energy and a docking station for use with the device.

A photovoltaic (PV) module mounting system comprises a plurality of PV modules, support brackets disposed under the modules and a ballast frame disposed under and attached to the support brackets. The ballast frame is supported on conventional building rooftops and attached thereto by conventional methods. The support bracket consists of front and rear supports, which can be adjusted to alter the desired tilt angles of the overlying PV modules. The ballast frames can be adjusted to varying widths and lengths. The system is effective in reducing the net effect of wind uplift force when modules are mounted on building rooftops. Additionally, the system provides the advantage of ease of use with less components and minimal roofing penetrations.

The present invention provides a device for converting wind flow energy into mechanical energy, comprising a wind-engaging member having an aerodynamic profile which generates an uplift force in the direction of a load cable when the airflow direction is perpendicular to the load cable, a steering mechanism configured to produce a steered movement about a first axis or in a first direction of the wind-engaging member and about a second axis or in a second direction that is different from the first direction or axis of the wind-engaging member, relative to the airflow direction, and a control unit configured to use the steering mechanism to move the wind-engaging member along a predetermined flight path in a flight plane perpendicular to the load cable. The present invention further provides a method for converting wind flow energy into mechanical energy and a docking station for use with the device.

An apparatus and method for attaching photovoltaic solar panels to a roof system surface. Thin film flexible panels are attached using a hook and loop system in which either the hook or loop material is attached to the underside of panel, and the other of the hook and loop material is attached the roof. Solar panels that are encased in a frame are attached using the hook and loop material directly to the roof system structure, or to an intermediate structure, which is in turn attached to the roof system surface. The method also determines the amount of mated hook and loop material that must be attached to each installed panel to ensure that the installed panels will be able to withstand the wind pressure uplift force required, and to ensure that in the event unexpected and excessive uplift force is ever encountered, the panels separate at the hook and loop interface. For roof system surfaces using a multiply layer membrane material, the hook or loop material can be directly attached to the membrane during its manufacturing process to eliminate the need of doing so at the job site.

A standing seam roof assembly in which adjacently disposed roof panels are supported by underlying support structure in overlapping edge relationship and connected with standing seams, the roof assembly resistant to sideslipping when subjected to uplift forces and having roof panels with female sidelap portions having male insertion cavities, while adjacently disposed roof panels having male sidelap portion lockingly engaged the female cavities. The sidelap shear capacity of the roof panels is increased in one embodiment by backer plates disposed in pairs on opposing sides of the standing seams and fastened together to sandwich together the female and male sidelap portions so the standing seams have increased resistance to side slipping under wind uplift. In another embodiment, cinch plates are supported on the roof panels between the standing seams and connected to an underlying backer member that extends to and is connected to the underlying support structure.

An assembly which is lightweight includes an interconnected array of PV modules, where each PV modules is defined in part by a module outer perimeter portion. This array is defined in part by an outer perimeter portion including an upper edge portion, side edge portions, and a lower edge portion. The array is secured to a sloped roof along at least one of the upper or lower edge portion of the array. The assembly further includes interlocking features along the module outer perimeter portion which distribute uplift forces to adjacent PV modules. Additionally included is at least one wind deflector located along the lower edge of the array and non-penetrating base feet disposed on the sloped roof supporting at least a portion of the array.

The present invention is a pivoting crash barrier for arresting an impacting vehicle without causing excessive injury to the driver. The crash barrier has an easily replaceable expendable gate which houses multiple plastically deformable cables mounted within for absorbing the energy of the impacting vehicle. The crash barrier design causes the cables to deform as an unit, rather than separately. The crash barrier gate is pivotally supported on a horizontal shaft by an operator unit positioned on a first side of a roadway. An engagement stanchion engageable by the outer tip of the lowered gate supports the lowered gate on the second, opposed side of the roadway. The upper sections of both crash barrier stanchions consist of operator heads that can pivot about the vertical axes of their respective mounting posts after the shearing of restraining shear pins whenever a vehicle impact occurs. This swiveling reduces the tendency for the components of the crash barrier other than the gate to sustain significant damage during vehicle impacts. The crash barrier gate further has a latch on the engagement stanchion side that prevents inadvertent gate unlatching from uplift forces to the gate and a simplified method of balancing the crash barrier with counterweights.

An elevated building surface assembly including a plurality of surface tiles, a plurality of support pedestals disposed in spaced-apart relation on a fixed surface and having a support plate with a top surface operatively supporting the surface tiles in horizontally spaced-apart relation, and a plurality of elongate restraining members configured to restrict movement of the surface tile(s) in directions away from first and second adjacent support pedestals and / or relative to one or more adjacent surface tiles to advantageously limit movement or displacement of the surface tile(s) that may otherwise occur due to uplift forces (e.g., generated by winds and / or the like).

The invention discloses a dummy hip joint calibration system and method for automobile collision, belonging to the field of automobile safety detection. The system comprises a test table; a dummy hip joint fixing device is arranged on the test table; and a dummy hip joint is fixedly arranged on the test table through the dummy hip joint fixing device. The system further comprises a rocking arm, a force sensor, a rocking arm lifting device and a data processor; one end of the rocking arm extends into a thigh hole of the dummy and is fixedly connected with the hip joint of the dummy; the force sensor is movably connected with the rocking arm; the rocking arm lifting device is connected with the force sensor and is used for applying uplift force to the rocking arm; a comparing module in the data processor compares the stress data of the dummy hip joint acquired by the force sensor with a calibrated standard data, and then the calibration module calibrates the detected dummy hip joint. The system and method provided by the invention can be used for solving the problems that in the prior art, much more sensors are required for the calibration table of the existing dummy hip joint, the calculation is complex and error is easy to cause, and meanwhile, the cost and the maintenance cost are high.

An elevated building surface assembly including a plurality of surface tiles, a plurality of support pedestals disposed in spaced-apart relation on a fixed surface and having a support plate with a top surface operatively supporting the surface tiles in horizontally spaced-apart relation, and a plurality of elongate restraining members configured to restrict movement of the surface tile(s) in directions away from first and second adjacent support pedestals and / or relative to one or more adjacent surface tiles to advantageously limit movement or displacement of the surface tile(s) that may otherwise occur due to uplift forces (e.g., generated by winds and / or the like).

A building roof tie for attaching roof trusses and rafters to wood top plates in building structures, said roof tie having a sheet metal body with risers and a bridge for overlapping a rafter and flaps for wrapping on the sides of the top plate. The flaps may be configured to penetrate into the top plate for additional stability. Turnbuckles attached to the bridge provide additional hold-down strength against increased uplift forces. Such turnbuckles may include a hinge and pin assembly that can adjust up and down, forward and backwards. The roof ties are pitched to conform to a variety of framing applications. A plurality of apertures is formed in the roof tie to provide openings for fasteners for connecting the tie to the wood top plate and rafter.

The invention discloses an uplift pile load testing method and a device thereof. The testing method includes the following steps: (1) selecting proper testing beam based on the uplift pile and erecting the testing beam on the uplift pile; (2) putting a jack on the testing beam; (3) putting a force transfer device on the upper surface of the jack; (4) putting a tension pulley under the jack, passing a wire rope through the force transfer device and the tension pulley, wherein the wire rope passes through the force transfer device in symmetry way, the two ends of the wire rope are fixed together, the shaft of the tension pulley is provided with an anchor rib, and the anchor rib is fixed with the steel bar of the uplift pile; and (5) operating the jack, the steel bar of the uplift pile begins to uniformly bear uplift force, thereby the uplift rib can reach maximum load under the function of the uplift force of the jack. The invention can cause the steel bar of uplift pile uniformly bear uplift load by using simple method and simple testing device so as to obtain accurately tested force parameters of the uplift pile.

A construction modification and associated method used in pre-stressed building structures is designed to enhance resistance to extreme high wind environments, such as hurricanes and tornadoes, and in earthquake prone regions is most useful for structures built of lightweight materials such as wood or aluminum but is also applicable to structures built of heavy materials such as brick, stone, concrete, reinforced concrete and steel. Modifications include increased spacing of the wall frame elements, namely wall studs or columns, symmetrical sheeting at both sides of the frame when wood is used to build wall panels or symmetrical building of walls inside the frame when heavy material as brick, concrete block, stone, cast concrete etc. are used to build panels, a new incorporated into structures is complement system of strings and balance beams and modification of the effective weight or gravity of the structure. The strings of the complement system are placed in channels running through the wood studs of wood wall panels (or columns of the frame system or massive walls if other heavy materials herein mentioned are used) and a balance beam is placed at the top of the walls of each story. A pre-stressing forces are supplied to the strings at the top of each story by a hydraulic devices or other mechanical means in direction coinciding with the direction of the structure's natural gravity. The balance beam distributes applied forces uniformly on the walls. The additional energy in the wall structure, called relative gravity, eliminates problems associated and caused by wind loads and seismic loads including intense vibration of walls, tension and uplift forces in structure, structure's instability and the other modifications eliminates the presence of anemic connectors and fasteners as the means in prior art for load transfer throughout the structure.

A framing assembly system for steel building that substantially reduces assembly time while maintaining excellent strength and mechanical integrity and has vastly improved resistance to uplift forces. Foundation assemblies or anchor structures are first precisely located before concrete is poured to form the foundation, encasing the anchor structures within the foundation. Columns may then be attached to the anchor structures without the need for readjusting the location of the columns. The rest of the building framework is subsequently attached to the columns. The resulting structure is highly resistant to uplift forces and seismic effects while being much faster and simpler to assemble than previous structures. Cracking of the concrete foundation prior to the complete curing of the concrete is also reduced.

The invention relates to an anti-frost-lifting anti-thaw-collapse foundation self-refrigeration device and a use method thereof. The device includes a foundation side wall self-refrigeration structureand a lock catch, and the foundation side wall self-refrigeration structure is arranged on the periphery of a pile foundation and includes a temperature sensor, a temperature control device, a control switch, a liquid nitrogen storage tank, an S-shaped tube and a vacuum generator. The temperature sensor is arranged on the side wall of pile foundation and connected with the temperature control device, the temperature control device is connected with and controls the control switch which is connected with the liquid nitrogen storage tank and one end of the S-shaped tube, the liquid nitrogen storage tank is arranged near the pile foundation, the S-shaped tube is arranged on the periphery of the pile foundation, the other end of the S-shaped tube is connected with the vacuum generator which is arranged near the pile foundation, and the lock catch is arranged on the pile foundation. The device makes the pile foundation effectively resist uplifting force and thaw collapse caused by swellingforce of frozen earth, and is suitable for pile foundations in high-cold areas, especially in permafrost or seasonal frozen soil areas, to prevent tower foundations of power transmission lines from frost lifting thaw collapse.

The invention relates to a soil cement expanding uplift pile taking anti-floating restraint for underground buildings and structures or a pile foundation for resisting the inclination of the underground buildings. The underground buildings and structures of an area with a higher underground water level all have structural anti-floating problems, so the uplift pile is necessary to be adopted to restrain the buoyancy of underground water for the underground buildings; in order to prevent the inclination of the underground buildings, inclined pulling force generated by the uplift pile foundation needs to be adopted to restrain the inclination, so the uplift pile includes a vertical uplift pile generating vertical pulling force and an inclined uplift pile generating inclined pulling force; and in order to increase the uplift force of the uplift pile inside a soft soil layer, the diameter, the pile body roughness and the expanding diameter of the uplift pile are increased. The soil cement expanding uplift pile comprises a soil cement material with changeable diameter, a set cement material, an anchorage body, an anchorage plate, an end-part locking pipe, a PVC sleeve, an anchorage device, and the like and adopts an intermediate and high pressure jet grouting and anchorage drag-in one-step molding method and a stirring jet grouting and anchorage drag-in one-step molding method.

The invention discloses a lifting method of a folding house. According to the lifting method, upward lifting force is simultaneously applied to the topmost end of the front part and the topmost end of the rear part of a roof to realize lifting and pulling force / pushing force is simultaneously applied to upper and lower hinge parts of left and right walls respectively to realize folding drop. The invention also discloses a lifting device of the folding house. The lifting device comprises at least two lifting devices and two drop devices. The invention also discloses a folding house system, which mainly comprises the folding house lifting device and the conventional folding house. According to the lifting method, a force application point and the pulling direction are skillfully found; by using the characteristics of a hinge structure of the folding house, the house is driven to drop smoothly and does not turn over easily; a rope system is used as a main force application medium by the lifting device, the structure is simple and skillful, and lifting can be simply and quickly realized after the house system is formed with the folding house. The lifting method and the lifting house are suitable for on-site set-up and folding operation of the folding house.

An apparatus and method is provided for tying down an existing roof frame to resist windstorm uplift forces, in which an elongate connector is inserted slantingly upward through a hole through the roof frame, allowing an upper end of the connector to protrude from the roof frame to receive a head member which is detachably attached thereto in order to prevent the roof frame from moving upward relative to the connector under an uplift force. The lower end of the connector is secured to an underlying wall such that the connector applies a restraining force against wind uplift forces.

An integrated, high strength, lightweight building structure that withstands seismic, flooding, and 250 mph wind loads and is resistant to wood destroying organisms, mildew, mold, rot, and water damage. The structural system incorporates watertight seals between the walls and flooring system, the joints in the walls, and around the doors and windows. The eaves and roof incorporate a novel design that distributes to the structural members the uplift forces caused by extreme wind loading events.

A peripheral stabilizing system for elevated flooring surfaces that is configured to resist uplift forces acting against the elevated flooring surface thereby reducing the likelihood of dislodged surface tiles and the like. Broadly, the disclosed system includes a support structure disposed over a fixed surface (e.g., roof deck or the like), a plurality of surface tiles appropriately laid over the support structure, and one or more restraint apparatuses (e.g., support ledgers) that are positionable adjacent the outer periphery of the flooring surface. Each restraint apparatus includes a mounting portion that is securable to a wall (e.g., parapet) and a restraint portion positionable over a portion of the elevated flooring surface adjacent the outer periphery for restricting movement of the flooring surface in a direction away from the fixed surface.

My invention, the Shear Wall Aspect Ratio Reducing Frame is a simple, economical, efficient, easy to install device that allows greater oppotunity and flexibility in the size and location of openings in the walls of wood frame constructed buildings particularly houses. The ARRF would replace the commercial, pre-fabricated systems now in use which are costly and inefficient labor-intensive shear wall devices. The ARRF achieves its goal by reducing the moment arm in the overturning equations that are used to determine the uplift forces in a shear wall. The ARRF reduces forces in walls rather than increase their bulk which is the strategic concept now in use throughout the design professions and the construction industry to solve the aspect ratio problem.

The invention relates to a method for a processing soft soil foundation of an intertidal belt to form a construction working face. According to the method, slurry is compressed into soil strata through drilling holes in a grouting mode of compact grouting, and with the compact of soil body and the entry of the grout fluid, grout foam space around grout compressing points is formed; and meanwhile, since a radial uplift force is formed under the action of the entry of the grout fluid, local unheaval of the stratum is caused to increase the bearing force of the soil body, thus, the construction working surface or a functional site is formed. The method comprises the concrete construction steps as follows: A. drilling holes by using drilling equipment of a drilling machine, a water pump and a slurry stirrer; B. grouting; C. forming the grout foam space around the grout compressing points to cause the local unheaval of the stratum; and D. finally forming the construction working face. The construction technology can overcome the defects of insufficient bearing force of soft soil and larger sink in the intertidal belt and form a duricrust meeting the construction requirement on the surface of the soft soil in the intertidal belt and has low construction cost, convenient construction and less time.