Pivoting Curb Mold Assembly for Slipform Sled Elevation Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing slipform sleds for extruding curbs and gutters lack consistent uniform elevation control, resulting in rough, uneven surfaces and requiring significant hand finishing and multiple mold exchanges for driveway sections, leading to wasted concrete and inefficiency in new home developments.
Innovation Solution
A pivoting mold assembly on a slipform sled that changes between standard and driveway curb elevations while in motion, eliminating the need for form installation and hand finishing, using a hydraulic actuator to pivot the mold and adjust the hopper vibrator position for seamless elevation transitions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If a knife plate is inserted into the curb section mold to scrape concrete for driveway curb level, then the curb elevation is adjusted to driveway level, but the concrete surface becomes ragged and requires significant hand finishing
Solution Approach 1:
The mold is made dynamically adjustable through a hydraulic cylinder that can lower the mold body to a second position for driveway curbs. This dynamic adjustment allows the mold to adapt to different curb types (standard vs. driveway) without requiring manual scraping or form installation, thereby maintaining smooth surface finish while achieving proper elevation control.
Solution Approach 2:
The single mold assembly is designed to perform multiple functions by accommodating both standard curbs and driveway curbs through vertical position adjustment. The hydraulic system enables the same mold to extrude both elevated rectangular profiles (standard curbs) and lower relatively flat profiles (driveway curbs), eliminating the need for separate molds or finishing operations.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the sled stops and the slipform mold is exchanged for each driveway transition, then the curb profile can be changed, but productivity decreases due to multiple starts and stops
Solution Approach 1:
The mold assembly incorporates a hydraulic cylinder that enables dynamic, continuous adjustment between standard and driveway curb profiles without requiring the sled to stop. The mold can be lowered to the second position while the sled is in motion, allowing seamless transitions and maintaining continuous paving operation, thereby preserving high productivity while achieving profile adaptability.
Solution Approach 2:
The system maintains continuous extrusion action by allowing profile changes during motion. The hydraulic actuation system enables the mold to transition between positions without interrupting the paving process, ensuring the useful action of extruding curb and gutter continues uninterrupted, thus maximizing productivity while providing adaptability.
3Adaptability or versatility
If hydraulic cylinder actuator presses against extruded paving material to change elevation, then curb elevation can be adjusted, but elevation control is inconsistent and uniformity is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The hydraulic cylinder is integrated into the mold assembly to directly lower the entire mold body to a second position, rather than pressing against the extruded material. This approach allows the mold to maintain its shaping function while achieving elevation adjustment, ensuring consistent and uniform curb surfaces for both standard and driveway curbs, thereby preserving manufacturing precision while providing adaptability.
4Manufacturing precision
If forms are installed along the driveway curb to establish elevation, then elevation control is achieved, but labor requirements increase for form installation and hand finishing
Solution Approach 1:
The mold assembly with hydraulic actuation serves itself by automatically adjusting to the correct elevation for driveway curbs through the second position. This self-adjusting mechanism eliminates the need for external forms or manual intervention to establish elevation, thereby achieving precise elevation control while reducing device complexity and labor requirements.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables continuous, uniform extrusion of curbs with reduced hand finishing needs, minimizing concrete waste and labor by allowing the slipform sled to maintain consistent elevation control during transitions between standard and driveway curb profiles.
Implementation Method 1
Vibrators are typically placed in the hopper to help move the paving material into the mold, remove voids and produce a uniform surface on the extruded curb and gutter
Implementation Method 2
using a hydraulic actuator to pivot the mold and adjust the hopper vibrator position for seamless elevation transitions
Implementation Method 3
Flowable paving material is placed in the hopper of the sled and flows into the mold by gravity where it is extruded out behind the sled while the sled moves forward
Data Source
AI summary
A slipform sled for paving street curbs and gutters has a hopper and a curb and gutter mold. A pivoting mold assembly having a standard curb elevation mold and a driveway curb elevation mold is mounted on the slipform sled. The pivoting mold assembly pivots on a shaft oriented parallel to the direction of motion of the slipform sled. Paving material is flowed into the hopper and is extruded through the standard curb mold or the driveway curb mold while the sled is moving providing a smooth uniform finish. Only the relatively small transition section between the standard curb and driveway curb needs hand finishing. The elevation of a vibrator in the hopper is changed to correspond to the elevation of the curb extruded.