DRILL TIP FOR FOUNDATION PILE
An improved drill tip for a foundation pile comprises a frustro-conical upper section, a cylindrical middle section, and a generally conical lower section, all disposed in coaxial alignment about a center axis, the upper section for attachment to a foundation pile, and having a bottom edge diameter smaller than a top edge diameter and an upper helical flight having a radial extent less than the top edge diameter, the middle section extending from the bottom edge of the upper section and having approximately the same diameter as the bottom edge diameter, and the lower section extending from a lower edge portion of the middle section and having a plurality of symmetrically disposed helical fins having a radial extent less than the bottom edge diameter, the lowermost portion of the fins extending freely below the conical main body of the lower section in a configuration resembling a swiveling fishtail.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Application No. 61/243,495 filed Sep. 17, 2009.
FIELD OF THE INVENTIONThis invention is directed to rotary foundation pile drilling technology and in particular to a drill tip for screw-type foundation piles that has an improved ability to penetrate the soil.
BACKGROUNDDeep foundations are widely used as foundation elements for structures. Two well known classes of piles are non-displacement piles and displacement piles. The former are installed by excavating a cylinder of soil from the ground and replacing it with some form of reinforcement, commonly, concrete. By far the most common method of excavating the soil is by use of an auger, giving rise to the term auger cast-in-place (ACIP) piles.
Displacement piles are either driven or drilled into the ground. Displacement piles laterally displace soil surrounding the pile shaft and load soil materials below the toe of the pile. Displacement piles are generally understood to have a stiffer response than non-displacement piles, and are capable of carrying larger loads than non-displacement piles. However, driving piles into the ground can result in excessive vibration and noise and are, therefore, problematic under certain conditions.
Drilled displacement piles are rotary displacement piles installed by inserting an auger into the ground with the combined application of torque and vertical force, the latter commonly referred to as “crowd.” The auger may be a continuous flight auger or a pile to the bottom end of which is attached an auger tip. Drilled displacement piles have favorable end bearing and skin friction capacities compared to ACIP piles. However, they are more expensive to install due to the need for heavy drill rigs required to produce the torque and crowd forces to drive the pile into the soil. An installation process that is less efficient correspondingly increases the expense of the foundation. There is, therefore, a need for improved drilled displacement piles to reduce the power requirements and expense associated with their installation.
An improved drill tip according to the invention is indicated generally in
An upper helical flight 24 is provided on the tapered outer surface 26 of upper section 14 extending vertically from near top edge 20 to bottom edge 22, and passing through an arc of approximately 180° around center axis A. Upper helical flight 24 has a comparatively shallow upper flight depth 28, shown in
The middle section 16 is attached to the bottom edge 22 of and depends from the upper section 14. Middle section 16 has a diameter equivalent to bottom diameter DB as illustrated, but it will be readily appreciated that the middle section diameter may be somewhat smaller or larger than bottom diameter DB as appropriate for soil conditions. A middle helical flight 30 is provided on the surface of middle section 16 and extends vertically from approximately the intersection of the upper and middle sections 14, 16, at bottom edge 22, to approximately the lower edge portion 32 of middle section 16 as seen in
As perhaps best shown in
As shown in
Fins 40 have a pitch substantially greater than the pitches of upper and middle helical flights 24, 30, given them more of a scooping action than flights 24, 30. Conversely, flights 24, 30, having shorter pitches, exhibit more of a biting or grabbing action on the surrounding medium.
Piles typically have diameters of 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 30 or 36 inches. Although the drill tip described above can be constructed according to any of these pile diameters, it is expected that the improved drill tip will most commonly be used with piles have diameters of 12.75″ and 16.00″.
It will also be understood that the configuration of the drill tip may be modified as required to accommodate different soil profiles.
In normal operation in the field, after the drill tip 10 is attached to a hollow foundation pile 12 as shown in
There have thus been described and illustrated certain preferred embodiments of an improved drill tip for a foundation pile according to the invention. Although the present invention has been described and illustrated in detail, it is clearly understood that the same is by way of illustration and example only and is not to be taken by way of limitation, the spirit and scope of the present invention being limited only by the terms of the appended claims and their legal equivalents.
Claims
1. A drill tip for a foundation pile, the drill tip comprising:
- a frustro-conical upper section having a top edge and a bottom edge, said top edge for attachment to the foundation pile, said top edge having a top edge diameter, said bottom edge having a bottom edge diameter smaller than said top edge diameter, and said upper section having an upper helical flight having a radial extent generally no greater than said top edge diameter,
- a cylindrical middle section extending from said bottom edge and having approximately the same diameter as said bottom edge diameter, and
- a generally conical lower section extending from said lower edge portion of said middle section, said upper, middle and lower sections disposed in coaxial alignment about a center axis.
2. The drill tip for a foundation pile of claim 1 wherein:
- said middle section has a lower edge portion and a middle helical flight having a radial extent generally no greater than said top edge diameter.
3. The drill tip for a foundation pile of claim 2 wherein:
- said lower section has a generally conical main body and a plurality of symmetrically disposed helical fins having a radial extent generally no greater than said bottom edge diameter, a lowermost portion of each said fin extending freely below said conical main body forming a plurality of blades resembling a swiveling fishtail.
Type: Application
Filed: Sep 17, 2010
Publication Date: Sep 22, 2011
Inventors: Mike Lindsay (Oakley, CA), Win Hillebert (Oakley, CA), John Honaker (Pinole, CA)
Application Number: 12/885,320
International Classification: E02D 7/14 (20060101);