Gin Pole Device for Raising and Lowering a Tower
The present invention provides a gin pole device for raising and lowering a tower that allows tension and length adjustments of the guy wires during tower erection to keep the tower as straight as possible, so that weight loads are equally distributed on the guy wires, thereby avoiding tower deformation.
The present invention generally relates to gin pole devices particularly useful to raise and lower tubular and lattice towers that are generally supported by guy wires. It more particularly concerns an improved gin pole device allowing tension and length adjustments of the erection guy wires during tower erection.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONThe usage of tubular and lattice towers is well spread in the meteorological, communication and wind assessment fields. The tower needs to be as light as possible and must be erected with basic tools such as a gin pole for example. Such a tower is generally installed in remote areas.
The necessity for higher towers is mainly dictated by the wind energy industry which uses more and more powerful wind turbines. Such turbines have to be installed on top of tapered towers that are built higher than conventional towers to gain more wind speed. Energy production is proportional to the cube of the wind speed and each increase in wind speed translates into greater energy production.
As in the mining or petroleum industry, wind energy needs prospecting prior to the investment of a full-scale wind farm. This prospecting is performed by using temporary towers mostly erected in remote or hard to access areas thus requiring light weight and relatively inexpensive installation.
In order to achieve an inexpensive installation, gin poles are required to raise and lower towers. Generally, such towers are provided with a plurality of support guy wires that are attached to the gin pole safely to raise the tower.
To improve installation of towers, it would be desirable to avoid tower deformation during the raise and the lower down of the tower. This would advantageously prevent the collapse of the tower during its erection.
Therefore, it would be desirable to provide an improved gin pole that allows tension and length adjustment of the erection guy wires during the raise and the lower down of the tower in order to keep the tubular tower as straight as possible, so that weight loads are advantageously equally distributed on the guy wires, thereby avoiding tower deformation.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONAn object of the present invention is to provide a gin pole device allowing tension and length adjustments of the erection guy wires during the erection or the lowering of the tower.
Accordingly, there is provided a gin pole device for raising and lowering a tower. The gin pole device is provided with a pole having an anchoring end for anchoring the pole. The gin pole device has at least two winching mechanisms mounted on the pole. The winching mechanisms comprise respectively at least two guy wires having their free ends connectable to different sections of the tower. The winching mechanisms allow independent tension and length adjustments for each of the guy wires. The gin pole device is also provided with guiding means mounted on a portion of the pole, distal to the winching mechanisms, for guiding the guy wires between the winching mechanisms and the sections of the tower.
These and other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent upon reading the detailed description and upon referring to the drawings in which:
The objects, advantages and other features of the present invention would become more apparent upon reading of the following non-restricted description of preferred embodiments thereof, given for the purpose of exemplification only with reference to the accompanying drawings.
DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENTIn the following description, similar features in the drawings have been given similar reference numerals and in order to weight down the figures, some elements are not referred to in some figures if they were already identified in a precedent figure.
The present invention concerns a gin pole device for controlling and adjusting tension of the erection guy wires which support the tower during its installation. The gin pole device of the present invention is particularly devised to advantageously keep the tower as straight as possible during the erection, so that weight loads are equally distributed on the guy wires, thereby avoiding tower deformation.
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It should be mentioned that the guy wires 18 supporting the tower 10 during its installation are also advantageously used to anchor the tower 10 to the ground once erected. These guy wires 18 are preferably conventional guy wires generally used in the art.
It should be understood that any length for the independent sections 12 of the tower 10 and any number of such sections could be envisaged. Moreover, any number of erection guy wires 18 can be attached to the tower 10 in order to be able to raise a tower 10 of the convenient height required by a particular application. With the gin pole device 14 of the present invention, during the erection or the lowering of the tower 10, weight loads can advantageously be equally distributed on the guy wires 18, thereby preventing cable break and also avoiding deformation of the sections 12 of the tower 10. The distribution of the loads on each of the guy wires 18 attached on the gin pole device 14 advantageously contribute to the possibility of erecting a taller tower.
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Although preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail herein and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to these precise embodiments and that various changes and modifications may be effected therein without departing from the scope of the present invention.
Claims
1. A gin pole device for raising and lowering a tower, comprising:
- a pole having an anchoring end for anchoring the pole;
- at least two winching mechanisms mounted on the pole, comprising respectively at least two guy wires having their free ends connectable to different sections of the tower, the winching mechanisms allowing independent tension and length adjustments for each of the guy wires; and
- guiding means mounted on a portion of the pole, distal to the winching mechanisms, for guiding the guy wires between the winching mechanisms and the sections of the tower.
2. The gin pole device according to claim 1, wherein said winching mechanisms are mounted proximate the anchoring end of the pole.
3. The gin pole device according to claim 1, wherein said winching mechanisms are mounted in a superposed relationship along the pole.
4. The gin, pole device according to claim 1, wherein the guiding means are provided with a guardrail for preventing the guy wires from leaving the guiding means.
5. The gin pole device according to claim 1, wherein said guiding means are mounted at a free end of the pole opposed the anchoring end thereof.
6. The gin pole device according to claim 5, wherein the guiding means comprise at least two rounded tracks mounted at the free end of the pole for respectively receiving the guy wires therein.
7. The gin pole device according to claim 6, wherein said rounded tracks are respectively provided with a non-abrasive guiding surface.
8. The gin pole device according to claim 6, wherein the guiding means are provided with a guardrail mounted above the tracks for preventing the guy wires from leaving the tracks.
9. The gin pole device according to claim 5, wherein the guiding means comprise at least two pulleys mounted at the free end of the pole for respectively guiding the guy wires therein.
10. The gin pole device according to claim 1, further comprising a connecting device mounted at the anchoring end of the pole for connecting the pole to a lower end of the tower.
11. The gin pole device according to claim 1, wherein each of the winching mechanisms is provided with a worm gear for preventing an unwanted unwinding of the guy wire connected thereto.
Type: Application
Filed: Jun 27, 2006
Publication Date: Aug 26, 2010
Inventor: Évangéliste Bourdages (Gaspe)
Application Number: 11/988,817