Building Container Outrigger for Vertical Construction Logistics
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Solution Overview
Problem
High-rise building construction faces inefficiencies and increased costs due to the use of tower cranes and exterior elevators for moving materials, tools, and workers between floors, as these methods are expensive, limited by weight and footprint, and result in congestion and additional costs for tool retrieval and debris removal.
Innovation Solution
A building container outrigger system that provides an elevated workspace between concrete slabs, featuring a container with support and outrigger beams that can be anchored to the slab floor, allowing for efficient movement of materials, tools, and personnel between floors without relying on elevators, and includes pre-configured containers for specific tasks like offices, breaks, and storage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Weight of moving object
If tower crane is used to lift materials and tools from base to floor, then materials and tools can be moved between floors, but the expense increases and weight restrictions limit the amount that can be moved
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transitions from vertical material movement (base to floor via crane/elevator) to horizontal movement (floor to floor via container outrigger system). The container is positioned on outriggers that extend beyond the building footprint, allowing materials to be moved laterally across the construction site at elevated levels, bypassing the weight and cost constraints of vertical lift systems.
2Area of stationary object
If exterior elevator is used to move workers and materials, then workers and materials can be transported between floors, but the foot print and weight restrictions limit the amount that can be moved
Solution Approach 1:
The system moves from vertical transport (elevator shaft) to horizontal transport (outrigger platform). The container on outriggers provides a lateral movement pathway that bypasses the elevator's vertical constraint, allowing larger loads and more workers to be moved without increasing the building's structural footprint.
Solution Approach 2:
The container system is modular and can be segmented into multiple containers distributed across the construction site. Each container on outriggers can independently hold materials and workers, providing flexible transport capacity that exceeds the single-elevator limitation.
3Ease of operation
If workers carry tools daily to and from floor, then workers can access their tools, but congestion occurs in exterior elevator and additional costs are incurred
Solution Approach 1:
Tools and materials are pre-loaded into containers before they are positioned on outriggers at the work floor. This preliminary organization eliminates the need for workers to carry individual tools daily, as all necessary tools are already staged in the container at the destination.
Solution Approach 2:
The system merges multiple individual tool-carrying trips into a single consolidated container delivery. Instead of workers individually transporting tools up and down the elevator multiple times, one container delivers all necessary tools and materials in a single horizontal movement.
4Productivity
If small rolling trash bins are used for debris removal, then debris can be collected, but workers must roll handcarts up ramp and dump into bins which congest the elevator
Solution Approach 1:
The patent moves debris removal from vertical (elevator shaft) to horizontal (outrigger platform). Trash bins are positioned on the outrigger system at the work floor level, allowing debris to be dumped laterally onto the platform where it can be collected and removed horizontally, bypassing the elevator's vertical congestion.
Data Source
AI summary
A building container outrigger to provide an elevated work space or debris removal for use between concrete slabs of a building under construction having a container, a plurality of support beams, each support beam positioned lengthwise under the floor of the container and extend therefrom the sides, a pair of spaced apart outrigger beams, a first outrigger end and a second outrigger end, each second outrigger end in contact with and affixed to the upper side of each support beam end, the other outrigger beam end removeably anchored to the slab floor with the front edge of the container flush with the exterior or front slab edge, and, thus, functions to efficiently move or remove materials and tools or personnel space from floor to floor as construction phases move vertically.