Burrowing Animal Grid Installation with Removable Guide Plate
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for protecting bank reinforcements and embankments from burrowing animals like beavers and muskrats are complex, costly, and prone to deformation or failure due to subsoil conditions, requiring extensive earthworks and dewatering or expensive steel sheet piling.
Innovation Solution
A method using two coupled shaped sheets with a hook connection at the bottom and bolt connection at the top to form a protective grid, which can be easily installed and reused, featuring a guide plate for overlapping and secure anchoring with a sheet pile vibrator or ram, allowing for the creation of a closed underground barrier.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If protective grids are installed in a temporary open trench, then the base of earthworks can be secured, but complex shoring, earthworks, and dewatering are required
Solution Approach 1:
A U-shaped guide plate made of sheet metal is introduced as an intermediary element that facilitates the installation of the protective grid. The guide plate is driven into the ground first, providing a stable base and alignment reference, which eliminates the need for complex shoring and dewatering operations while ensuring reliable installation of the protective grid
Solution Approach 2:
The guide plate is installed in advance before the protective grid is placed. This preliminary action creates a prepared foundation and alignment structure that simplifies subsequent installation steps, avoiding the need for complex temporary structures and dewatering systems
2Reliability
If steel sheet piles are used to secure the base, then protection against burrowing animals is achieved, but high costs are incurred
Solution Approach 1:
The guide plate is made from inexpensive sheet metal that can be easily driven into the ground and removed later. This replaces expensive steel sheet piles with a cheaper, simpler element that serves its purpose during installation and can be recovered without significant cost
Solution Approach 2:
The material specification is changed from heavy steel sheet piles to lighter sheet metal for the guide plate. This parameter change reduces material cost and installation complexity while maintaining the functional requirement of providing a stable base for the protective grid
3Reliability
If a sheet of metal is inserted into the ground, then anchoring is achieved, but deformation from contact with stones occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The guide plate is made from sheet metal that has sufficient flexibility to be driven into the ground without excessive force. This flexibility allows the material to conform to minor irregularities in the subsoil without deforming, while still achieving stable anchoring
Solution Approach 2:
The guide plate design includes features that distribute installation forces and protect against damage during driving. The U-shaped configuration and appropriate material selection provide inherent protection against deformation from contact with stones and other subsoil obstacles
4Reliability
If protective grids are installed vertically, then protection against burrowing animals is provided, but installation requires complex preparatory work
Solution Approach 1:
The guide plate serves as a mediator that simplifies the installation process. By providing a pre-installed base and alignment reference, it eliminates the need for complex preparatory work such as shoring and dewatering, reducing installation time while ensuring vertical proper installation of the protective grid
Solution Approach 2:
The guide plate is installed in advance to create a prepared foundation. This preliminary action eliminates the need for time-consuming preparatory work during the main installation phase, significantly reducing total installation time while ensuring proper vertical alignment
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to a device and a method for installing vertical burrowing animal protection grids (hereinafter referred to as grids), wherein the device has a first shaped sheet in the form of a support sheet and a second shaped sheet in the form of a cover, wherein the first and second shaped sheet are arranged parallel to each other and the grid can be inserted between the first and second shaped sheet in such a way that the first and second shaped sheet form a protective cover for the grid.Furthermore, a method for installing vertical burrowing animal protection grids is described, wherein a grid is fixed in a device between a first shaped sheet in the form of a support sheet and a second shaped sheet in the form of a cover by means of a connection of the first and second shaped sheets and is installed in a building axis in the ground and that the connection is separated after installation and the shaped sheets are pulled out of the ground individually so that the grid remains in the ground.