Retaining wall soil reinforcing connector and method
AssigneeT & B Structural Systems LLC
InventorThomas P. Taylor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An apparatus and method of connecting an earthen formation to a concrete facing of a mechanically stabilized earth (MSE) structure. A one-piece connector having a stem and a tab, wherein the stem is connected to a soil reinforcing element embedded within the earthen formation and the tab is connected to a facing anchor attached to the concrete facing. The connection allows soil reinforcing mats to swivel in a horizontal plane, but also to shift vertically in reaction to MSE settling or thermal expansion/contraction of an MSE structure.
Claims25
A system for securing a facing to an earthen formation, comprising:
- a soil reinforcing element having a pair of longitudinal wires welded to a plurality of spaced transverse wires, wherein the pair of longitudinal wires have lead ends that converge toward one another;
- a connection stud having a first end coupled to the lead ends of the longitudinal wires and a second end defining one or more holes centrally-disposed therethrough;
- a facing anchor having first and second connection points extending from a back face of the facing and vertically-offset from each other a distance X, each connection point defining a horizontally-disposed perforation;
- and
- a coupling device configured to be coupled simultaneously to the horizontally-disposed perforation of each connection point and the hole of the connection stud to thereby secure the connection stud to the facing anchor, wherein the soil reinforcing element is capable of swiveling in a horizontal plane and shifting vertically over the distance X.
A method of securing a facing to a soil reinforcing element, comprising:
- welding a pair of converging lead ends of the soil reinforcing element to a first end of a connection stud;
- inserting a second end of the connection stud into a gap formed between first and second connection points of a facing anchor, the second end and first and second connection points each defining a horizontally-disposed perforation therein, wherein the first and second connection points extend from a back face of the facing and are vertically-offset a distance X;
- and
- securing the connection stud against separation from the facing anchor by inserting a coupling device simultaneously into the horizontally-disposed perforations of each of the second end and first and second connection points, wherein the soil reinforcing element is capable of swiveling in a horizontal plane and shifting vertically over the distance X.
A connection stud for securing a soil reinforcing element to a facing, comprising:
- a stem having a first end and a second end, the second end of the stem being coupled to a pair of converging longitudinal wires from the soil reinforcing element;
- and
- a tab coupled to the first end of the stem and defining at least one hole within the tab, wherein the tab is configured to be secured via the at least one hole to a facing anchor extending from a back face of the facing, the soil reinforcing element being capable of swiveling about an axis defined through the at least one hole in a horizontal plane and shifting vertically over a distance X.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.