Surface-Mount Earth Anchor Foundations With Load Testing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional solar array foundation installations are costly, time-consuming, and environmentally disruptive, requiring extensive pre-development, geotechnical reports, and skilled labor, while lacking efficient methods for real-time soil condition assessment and compliance with local building codes.
Innovation Solution
A surface-mount installation system using toggle earth anchors and a portable load tension testing device for earth anchors, allowing real-time soil condition testing and compliance verification during installation, eliminating the need for traditional geotechnical reports and site preparation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional foundation methods (geotechnical reports, site preparation, heavy equipment) are used, then structural stability is ensured, but installation time and cost increase substantially
Solution Approach 1:
The foundation system is segmented into modular components: surface-mounted anchors with adjustable legs that can be independently installed and configured. This eliminates the need for monolithic concrete foundations and heavy equipment, reducing installation time while maintaining structural stability through distributed anchoring points.
Solution Approach 2:
Anchors are pre-assembled with adjustable legs and mounting components at the surface, eliminating the need for extensive on-site preparation. The anchors are designed to be pre-configured with appropriate leg lengths and orientations based on anticipated soil conditions, allowing rapid deployment without geotechnical reports.
2Reliability
If conventional foundation methods are used, then compliance with building codes is achieved, but procurement time and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The anchor system includes integrated load testing capabilities that allow the structure to self-verify its compliance with building codes. Load testers can be attached to the adjustable legs to perform on-site tension tests, providing immediate compliance verification without requiring external engineering firms or lengthy approval processes.
Solution Approach 2:
The adjustable leg design allows rapid modification of anchor depth, angle, and positioning parameters to optimize performance for different soil conditions and code requirements. This adaptability eliminates the need for extensive procurement of custom-engineered solutions for each site.
3Productivity
If surface-mount installation with earth anchors is used, then installation speed and cost are reduced, but real-time soil condition assessment capability is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The adjustable leg design provides real-time feedback on soil conditions during installation. As legs are driven into the ground and adjusted to achieve proper tension, the resistance and positioning requirements provide immediate information about soil bearing capacity and characteristics, allowing on-the-fly adjustments without separate testing.
Solution Approach 2:
Traditional mechanical soil testing equipment and geotechnical reports are replaced with the mechanical behavior of the anchor legs themselves. The legs act as probing elements that reveal soil conditions through their installation characteristics, tension requirements, and positioning needs, substituting complex testing machinery with simple mechanical interaction.
4Strength
If conventional foundations are used, then load bearing capacity is ensured, but environmental disruption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The harmful elements of conventional foundations (extensive earth moving, concrete pouring, heavy equipment mobilization) are extracted and removed from the installation process. Only minimal surface preparation and small anchor holes are required, eliminating the environmental disruption associated with traditional foundation construction while maintaining load bearing capacity through distributed anchoring.
Data Source
AI summary
Devices, systems, and methods for installing earth anchor foundations and/or conducting load tension tests on earth anchors used to secure structures, such as solar platforms, trellises, tents, decking, bleachers, telephone poles, powerlines, construction scaffolding, and the like. In one example, the device includes a base plate, a plurality of elongate telescoping members extending from the base plate and containing a crank mechanism. A drive shaft on the upper member is coupled to the crank mechanism to raise and lower the upper member relative to the base plate. A support arm or shelf is provided on the upper member for raising a frame during installation of the structure, and a testing hook is provided on the upper member for conducting a load tension test on one or more earth anchors used to secure the structure using a load measurement device coupled to the hook and the earth anchor(s).