ADJUSTABLE SYSTEM FOR SUPPORTING A STRUCTURE USING A PILE
The subject matter disclosed pertains to an adjustable system for supporting a structure using a pile. The system has a pile with a helical flighting. The top of the pile has a threaded receptacle that receives a threaded bar of a bracket. The bracket may be rotated to adjust the height of the bracket and thereby adjust the position of the structure. The bracket includes holes for receiving fasteners for securing an attachment. The attachment, in turn, may connect to the structure.
This application claims priority to and the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/760,934 (filed Feb. 5, 2013) the entirety of which is incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONThe subject matter disclosed herein relates to systems for supporting and adjusting the height of a structure, such as a building, solar frame or machine base.
In certain situations, it is desirable to raise a structure above ground level in a controlled fashion. For example, to safeguard a building against a hurricane, a building may be raised by four to six feet, or more, above ground level. The building is supported by a series of piles. During a storm, water is permitted to flow around the piles and under the building. This increases the likelihood the building will weather the storm. In other examples, a solar frame of a solar panel array is supported by a series of piles. These piles must be carefully installed so as to permit the proper alignment of the solar frame with the sun.
Unfortunately, not all buildings are already raised above ground level and many building that are already on pile supports are not high enough to avoid flood waters. The use of helical piles, while advantageous, makes proper alignment of the structure difficult since the orientation of the top of the helical pile changes with the rotation of the helical pile.
It would be desirable to retrofit a ground-level building with a system to support the building on piles. It would also be desirable to lift homes on piles to a higher elevation. It would further be desirable to assist in leveling of a structure after the installation of the piles. This would greatly improve the installation procedure and ensure a structurally sound connection to the building.
The discussion above is merely provided for general background information and is not intended to be used as an aid in determining the scope of the claimed subject matter.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTIONThe subject matter disclosed pertains to an adjustable system for supporting a structure using a pile. The system has a pile with a helical flighting. The top of the pile has a threaded receptacle that receives a threaded bar of a bracket. The bracket may be rotated to adjust the height of the bracket and thereby adjust the position of the structure. The bracket includes holes for receiving fasteners for securing an attachment. The attachment, in turn, may connect to the structure. An advantage that may be realized in the practice of some disclosed embodiments of the system is that the height, position and alignment of the bracket can be controlled after pile installation despite the complications caused by the staggering motion that occurs when installing helical piles.
[I WILL SUMMARIZE AGREED UPON CLAIMS AFTER FIRST DRAFT].
This brief description of the invention is intended only to provide a brief overview of subject matter disclosed herein according to one or more illustrative embodiments, and does not serve as a guide to interpreting the claims or to define or limit the scope of the invention, which is defined only by the appended claims. This brief description is provided to introduce an illustrative selection of concepts in a simplified form that are further described below in the detailed description. This brief description is not intended to identify key features or essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used as an aid in determining the scope of the claimed subject matter. The claimed subject matter is not limited to implementations that solve any or all disadvantages noted in the background.
So that the manner in which the features of the invention can be understood, a detailed description of the invention may be had by reference to certain embodiments, some of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. It is to be noted, however, that the drawings illustrate only certain embodiments of this invention and are therefore not to be considered limiting of its scope, for the scope of the invention encompasses other equally effective embodiments. The drawings are not necessarily to scale, emphasis generally being placed upon illustrating the features of certain embodiments of the invention. In the drawings, like numerals are used to indicate like parts throughout the various views. Thus, for further understanding of the invention, reference can be made to the following detailed description, read in connection with the drawings in which:
The bracket 300 provides a mechanism to align the upper terminus 110 of the pile 104. When an auger grouted steel core displacement pile or a helical pile is driven into the ground, the rotary motion of the driving action introduces a staggering motion that makes it difficult to control the relative orientation of two piles 104. For example, in the case of a solar frame for a ground mounted solar panel array, piles are driven to a desired depth in a pattern necessary for connection to the solar frame. The position of the piles are important for the efficient assemble of the frame. Unfortunately, height, position and alignment are a constant problem. The brackets 300, when placed atop each of the piles 104, permits the upper terminus 110 of each pile to be adjusted idiosyncratically.
As shown in
Referring to
In those embodiments which utilize a concrete beam 920, a series of welded plates 922 with rebar attached to steel column is provided. A contractor may form a beam about the pile tops providing increased lateral stability and continuous bearing surface for such homes or structures not previously supported by a pile foundation.
This written description uses examples to disclose the invention, including the best mode, and also to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the invention, including making and using any devices or systems and performing any incorporated methods. The patentable scope of the invention is defined by the claims, and may include other examples that occur to those skilled in the art. Such other examples are intended to be within the scope of the claims if they have structural elements that do not differ from the literal language of the claims, or if they include equivalent structural elements with insubstantial differences from the literal language of the claims.
Claims
1. An adjustable system for supporting a structure using a pile, the system comprising:
- a pile with a bottom portion comprising helical flighting and a top portion comprising a threaded receptacle disposed within the top portion and opening at an upper terminus of the top portion;
- a bracket comprising a horizontal base and a threaded bar extended from a planar surface of the horizontal base, the threaded bar engaging the threaded receptacle such that rotation of the threaded bar results in a change in height of the horizontal base;
- a plurality of holes in the horizontal base for receiving fasteners to secure an attachment to the horizontal base.
2. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the horizontal base is circular and each hole of the plurality of holes is an elongated hole.
3. The system as recited in claim 2, wherein each elongated hole is a curved elongated hole.
4. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein each hole in the plurality of holes is the same distance from a center of the horizontal base.
5. The system as recited in claim 1, further comprising a structure contiguous with the horizontal base, wherein the horizontal base provides support for the structure.
6. The system as recited in claim 5, wherein at least a portion of the helical flighting is disposed below ground and at least a portion of the top portion is disposed above ground.
7. The system as recited in claim 5, further comprising a casing disposed about the portion of the top portion that is disposed above ground.
8. The system as recited in claim 1, further comprising an attachment, removably connected to the horizontal base of the bracket, the attachment comprising an attachment base contiguous with the horizontal base, the attachment base comprising at least one elongated hole for alignment with at least one hole of the plurality of holes in the horizontal base.
9. The system as recited in claim 8, wherein the attachment further comprises at least one vertical plate attached to the attachment base and forming a substantially right angle therewith.
10. An adjustable system for supporting a structure using a pile, the system comprising:
- a pile with a bottom portion comprising helical flighting and a top portion comprising a threaded receptacle disposed within the top portion and opening at an upper terminus of the top portion;
- a bracket comprising a horizontal base and a threaded bar extended from a planar surface of the horizontal base with a center, the threaded bar being disposed at the center and engaging the threaded receptacle such that rotation of the threaded bar results in a change in height of the horizontal base;
- a plurality of holes in the horizontal base for receiving fasteners to secure an attachment to the horizontal base, each hole in the plurality of holes being an elongated hole that is the same distance from the center of the horizontal base;
- an attachment, removably connected to the horizontal base of the bracket, the attachment comprising: an attachment base contiguous with the horizontal base, the attachment base comprising at least one elongated hole for alignment with at least one hole of the plurality of holes in the horizontal base.
11. The system as recited in claim 10, wherein the attachment further comprises a pair of parallel vertical plates, separated from one another by a distance, both attached to the attachment base.
12. The system as recited in claim 10, wherein the attachment further comprises a vertical plate attached to the attachment base.
13. The system as recited in claim 12, wherein the vertical plate and the attachment base form a substantially right angle.
14. The system as recited in claim 13, wherein the vertical plate and the attachment base are joined by a triangular gusset.
15. The system as recited in claim 10, wherein the horizontal base is circular.
16. A method of supporting a structure using a pile, the method comprising steps of:
- placing first pile and second pile proximate a structure, each pile respectively comprising a bottom portion comprising helical flighting and a top portion comprising a threaded receptacle disposed within the top portion and opening at an upper terminus of the top portion; a bracket comprising a horizontal base and a threaded bar extended from a planar surface of the horizontal base with a center, the threaded bar being disposed at the center and engaging the threaded receptacle such that rotation of the threaded bar results in a change in height of the horizontal base; a plurality of holes in the horizontal base for receiving fasteners to secure an attachment to the horizontal base, each hole in the plurality of holes being an elongated hole that is the same distance from the center of the horizontal base;
- engaging the bracket of the first pile with a first portion of the structure;
- rotating the bracket of the second pile until the bracket of the second pile engages a second portion of the structure, the step of rotating occurring until the structure is placed in a desired vertical position;
- securing a first attachment to the bracket of the first pile; and
- attaching the first attachment to the structure.
17. The method as recited in claim 16, further comprising
- securing a second attachment to the bracket of the second pile;
- attaching the second attachment to the structure.
18. The method as recited in claim 16, wherein the step of placing the first pile and the second pile comprises rotating the first pile and the second pile to pull the first pile and second pile into the ground using each pile's helical flighting.
Type: Application
Filed: Feb 5, 2014
Publication Date: Aug 14, 2014
Inventor: Benjamin G. Stroyer (Webster, NY)
Application Number: 14/173,416
International Classification: E02D 5/22 (20060101); E02D 5/56 (20060101); E02D 5/24 (20060101);