Modular foam floating bridge
AssigneeSandia Corporation
InventorRonald L. Woodfin
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A floating modular bridge has a plurality of modules of two types. Most modules are flexible fabric envelopes having a parallelogram profile that attains shape and strength when filled on site with a rigid foam that is injected into the envelope. The other module is a keystone that has a trapazoidal profile. These modules are strung together by cables to make a lightweight bridge.
Claims13
A floating bridge comprising a plurality of parallelogram modules and one trapazoid module arranged in an end-to-end series relation along at least one cable extending from a first rigid support at one end of said bridge to a second rigid support at the other end of said bridge, all said modules comprising:
- an outer envelope consisting of opposed and equal rectangular end pieces, opposed and equal side pieces, and opposed and equal rectangular surface pieces, the edges of said pieces being connected to each other to form a six-sided structure enclosing a volume, the volume being filled with rigid polymer foam;
- said parallelogram modules having side pieces having the shape of a parallelogram wherein one of the angles between end pieces and surface pieces is acute and the other angle is obtuse;
- said trapazoid module having side pieces having the shape of a trapezoid wherein the angles between the end pieces and the surface pieces are equal to the angles of the parallelogram modules;
- wherein said modules are arranged such that an upper end piece from each module overlaps a lower end piece from an adjacent module.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.