AU602697B2 - Method and means for forming apertured concrete slabs - Google Patents

Description

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i PCT WORLD INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY ORGANIZATION INTERNATIONAL APPLICATI P Is D E HE ATENT COOPERATION TREATY (PCT) (51) International Patent Classification 4 11) International Publication Number: WO 87/ 06971 EO4G 15/06 Al (43) International Publication Date: 19 November 1987 (19.11.87) (21) International Application Number: PCT/AU87/00129 Published With international search report.

(22) International Filing Date: 6 May 1987 (06.05.87) (31) Priority Application Numbers: PH 5760 the PH 5975 This document contains te amendments made under (32) Priority Dates: 6 May 1986 (06.05.86) 1 eutin 49 and is correct for May 1986 (20.05.86) Thpin Ia (33) Priority Country: AU (71X72) Applicant and Inventor: ROBERTSON, Paul [AU/ AU]; 23 Dirkala Street, Mansfield, QLD 4122 (AU).

(74) Agent: T.G. AHEARN CO.; 79 Eagle Street, Bris- J.P. 24 DEC 1987 bane, QLD 4000 (AU).

AUSTRALIAN

(81) Designated States: AU, US.

DEC 1987 PATENT OFFICE (54)Title: MEf irO) OF AND MEANS FOR FORMING APERTURED CONCRETE SLABS (57) Abstract An aperture forming apparatus (10) for use in providing an aperture in concrete flooring (11) comprising a dishshaped sleeve-holder (18) securable to formwork a sleeve (12) is receivable in the sleeve-holder The sleeve-holder (18) is retained in the concr'-te slab (11) and the sleeve may be removed. After the slab (11) has hardened and the formwork (17) is removed, the aperture (21) formed by sleeve (12) may be accessed through base (13) by commencing a cut at drain hole The aperture (21) is used for passage of pipes or service lines through a concrete floor or wall and is back filled with filler to ensure acceptable fire ratings are maintained once a pipe has been passed through the aperture (21).

1 WO 87/06971 PCT/AU87/00129 "METHOD OF AND MEANS FOR FORMING APERTURED CONCRETE

SLABS"

FIELD OF THE INVENTION THIS INVENTION relates to a new and improved method of and means for forming apertured concrete slabs, and more particularly to improvements relating to the common practice of pouring a concrete slab when an aperture-defining sleeve is attached to the formwork so that the resultant aperture may be used for the passage of pipework or other service lines through the slab.

BACKGROUND ART Principally the invention is applied to the pouring of horizontal slabs for concrete floors, ceilings and the like, as is common practice in multistorey buildings, for example, but it is to'be understood that it may also be applied to walls.

According to the prior art method, as described in for example, U.S. patents Nos. 2,694,847; 3,004,320; 2,234,784; 3,276,176; and 2,968,855, a sleeve of known diameter is secured by for example, nailing to the formwork where an aperture is to be provided for the passage of pipes or other service lines once the concrete has been poured and the formwork removed.

These conventional sleeves are each provided with sights where nails or clouts may be driven into the formwork for stable mounting, or other mounting means may be provided and after pouring has been affected, the sleeve is removed along with the formwork and is thrown away In all the above prior U.S. patents, once the formwork is removed an aperture extending through the slab is exposed and once a pipe or a service line is passed through the aperture, it is necessary to fill the aperture with concrete to ensure appropriate fire ratings are met. J The resulting aperture presents difficulty in S filling-in processes after the service pipe or.service j

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a line has been passed through and secured in position. The underneath side of the aperture must be patched with concrete, cement or equivalent, there being difficulty in supporting the patch, there often being used paper, board, iron or other materials which are officially disapproved to assist support and setting of the patch. Thereafter a tradesman goes to the top of the slab and completes the filling of the aperture by pouring concrete therein and then trowelling it off.

These known procedures result in a number of problems -0 arising from the removal of the sleeve so that the aperture will have a jagged bottom edge which makes awkward the provision of an aesthetically pleasing patch. Filling of concrete into the concrete defined aperture may result in poor waterproofing, while the past methods as described can also result in the loss of desirable fire-proofing.

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The present invention has been devised to overcome the problems currently experienced as the aforementioned, and has for its principal object to provide a new system, method of and apparatus for forming an apertured concrete slab, whereby there will be savings in costs, ease and speed of operation, and the formation of a sealed aperture which has improved waterproofing and fire-proofing characteristics, as well as being attractive in appearance at the position of the underneath of the aperture.

25 Other objects and advantages of the invention will be hereinafter apparent.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, the invention resides broadly in slab penetration apparatus for use in penetrating a slab during the formation thereof from material laid whilst wet and allowed to harden, said apparatus including a hollow -generally dish-shaped body, said dish-shaped body being open at one end, means adjacent said open end of said body adapted to be releasably secured to formwork defining a boundary for one side of said slab during the formation thereof, a tubular member extending into said body from the side thereof opposite said open end so that one end thereof is disposed within said body, said tubular member being adapted to extend from said body at least to the opposite side of said slab and wherein said body is adapted to be anchored and thereby retained in said slab by the material thereof when the latter hardens so as to define a space surrounding said one end of said tubular member whereby to facilitate coupling of said tubular member to a further member.

Preferably said body includes a sleeve portion adapted to closely surround and support said tubular member. The body may also include an outward projection adapted to facilitate retention oY said body in said slab when said material thereof hardens and see suitably said outward projection comprises an annular flange.

The body may also include flange means adjacent said open se* end of said body, said flange means being adapted to be secured to said formwork for example by nailing.

Preferably coupling means are provided for coupling of said tubular member to said further member, said coupling means suitably comprising a male/female coupling.

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In or-der that the invention may be more readily understood and be put into practical effect, reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, wherein:- Fig. 1 is a cut-away sectional view through a slab or flooring constructed using the method and apparatus of the present invention; Fig. 2 is a pictorial view illustrating a dish-shaped body ur sleeve-holder constructed in accordance with the present invention; Figs. 3 and 4 are pictorial views illustrating further embodiments of the present invention; Fig. 5 is a pictorial view illustrating one form of sleeve member applicable to the present invention; and Fig. 6 is a pictorial view illustrating A further embodiment of the present invention.

METHOD OF PERFORMANCE Referring to Fig. 1 there is illustrated a crosssectional pictorial view, a cut-away view of a slab or flooring 3 constructed in accordance with the method and apparatus of one form of the present invention. The slab 10 is made from material ',aid while wet and allowed to 0@

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WO 87/06971 PCT/AU87/00129 harden such as concrete 11 in which is retained a sleeve member 12 which may be of fire-proof material which is engaged within the periphery of a sleeve-holder 18.

The sleeve-holder is of general dished shape and has a base portion 13 and a circular wall 14 and an outwardly extending flange 15, the outward extending flange 15 serving to assist in the retention of the sleeve holder 12 within the concrete 11. A plurality of nails 16 are driven through the base 13 of sleeve holder 12 into ply formwork 17 in order to secure the dishshaped body portion relative to the formwork. The dishshaped portion would normally be secured to the formwork at a predetermined site for the location of pipes or service lines and the sleeve member 12 would be placed within the dish-shaped body and after all necessary dish-shaped bodies and sleeve members are in position, the slab would be poured. After the slab has been allowed to harden, the formwork would be removed and it will be realised that the sleeve-holder 18 and the sleeve member 12 will be retained in the concrete slab It will be realised however, that whilst the sleeve-holder 18 is retained in the slab 10 it may be possible, in the practice of the present invention to utilise a removable sleeve member which may be reused and in this regard, the sleeve member 12 may include a plurality of hinged segments which may fold inwardly of the hardened concrete aperture in order to allow removal from the slab 10 of the sleeve member 12.

Referring now to Fig. 2 there is illustrated the sleeve-holder 18 of Fig. 1 which is shown in perspective view and as can be seen it comprises a plastics or metal material of relatively thin base A thickness and the base 13 includes a plurality of holes 19 through which clouts, as in 16 of Fig. I may be driven into desired formwork, in addition a drainage P [~ii

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-il~~I~C DTi I~yC i i WO 87/06971 PCT/AU87/00129 6 hole 20 may be provided in order to allow water to drain from the aperture 1 defined in the slab 10. As can be seen the peripheral flange 15 is a continuous circumferential flange, but this may in fact be in sections and may extend from any point about the periphery of the wall section 14.

In addition whilst the sleeve member: 12 is illustrated located within the periphery of the sleeve holder 18, it may be possible to extend the slueve holder upwardly from the flange 15 and mount the sleeve member exteriorly of the wall 14 and rest same on the upper surface of the flange It will be realised that it is a particularly advantageous feature of the present invention to retain within the slab a plate-like member 13 extending across an aperture formed in the slab during the pouring process, the plate 13 appearing from beneath to be substantially contiguous with the lower surface of the slab and defining an aesthetic appearance which may be finished by any known plastering techniques and may provide a locating means for pipes or service lines, with the plate 13 simply being cut away to define a hole of suitable size for passage of particularly sized pipes through the aperture 21.

The holder is preferably made of metal which is sufficiently rigid but easily penetrated when required, being suitably of copper or zinc coated galvanised iron, and the base 13 is suitably provided with an initial central hole for drainage purposes. The sleeve member may conveniently be made from a ceramic fibre material of such vertical height as to protrude above the level of the upper surface of the slab to be formed.

The sleeve-holder may conveniently be made having chamfered or stepped corners or any other means which serves to retain the sleeve holder within the 1 1 cc~ I WO 87/06971 PCT/AU87/0129 7 slab. In this regard, sleeve-holder may be of such extent that there is no need for extensions of the vertical walls in order to retain the same within the slab and it may be retained within the slab by the normal adhesive affects of having an extended metal surface in contact and retained within a concrete body.

The sleeves may be made of a ceramic fibrous material such as that produced in Australia by Morganite Ceramic Fibres Pty. Ltd. and sold under the trade mark "TRITON KAOWOOL". These sleeves are inexpensive and can be made by any suitable method, being easily machined to have smooth inside and outside surfaces if the initial surfaces are rough as a result of manufacturing processes. They are very rigid, light in weight and fire proof with no asbestos content, and since they are required in various diameters, they may be transported with smaller diameter sleeves located within larger diameter sleeves. They are fire preventative up to 1260 degrees Celsius, with a melting point as high as 1760 degrees Celsius.

The components may have desired dimensions to suit a range of applications, being designed to replace galvanised iron pipes having internal diameters of say mm, 100 mm, 150 mm, 200 mm, 250 mm and 300 mm with an average of 24 ga'age thickness. The ceramic fibrous sleeves may have wall thicknesses from say 10 mm to according to the particular sleeve diameter while the length of each sleeve will be in accordance with the intended thickness of the slab, fairly standard lengths being perhaps 150 mm, 300 mm and 500 mm in order to o exceed this lead thickness. The sleeve-holders may be dimensioned to correspond to the sleeves, the peripheral wall typically being 550 mm long. The draining hole in the dish-shaped body base 13 may be 15 mm in diameter, while the plurality of 3 mm holes 19 are drilled in the disc-shaped base 13 ,lose to the drainage M R WO 87/06971 PCT/AU7/00129 8 hole for nailing to the formwork. The draining hole also serves as a site for a tradesman to commence cutting an enlarged pipe receiving hole. The sleeves may if desired have an inside coating wh.ch will adhere and seal well to ensure a waterproof and fire resistant surface. It will be obvious that the sleeve may ideally be colour co-ordinated to assist tradesman selecting sizes and types very quickly and accurately, any one of the known types of colour coding being usable, such as seamless membranes which are waterproof and fireproof and can be brought into a dozen colours such as that sold under the trade mark "EURA-SEAL".

In use, a sleeve-holder may be nailed to the formwork with desired precision at the required location, using nails or clouts fitting closely within the drilled holes about the drainage hole so that the clouts draw out and down through the drilled holes when the formwork is taken away. The selected sleeve is then located closely in its holder and the concrete may be poured, the top of the sleeve being covered by tape if desired, though I envisage that a removable and reusable cap might be usefully employed. After the concrete has set, the formwork is removed to leave the slab fixedly containing the sleeve and its holder, with neither being thrown away. If the slab is left in this condition, the drainage hole will permit rainwater or the like to escape. However, workmen may make a desired aperture by penetrating the disc and passing a pipe or pies or other service lines through the sleeve and thus through the slab. It is then a simple matter to fill in the aperture defined by the sleeve, with the concrete, cement or other fill being supported by the disc of the holder. The latter then provides a smooth and attractive underneath contiguous with the lower face of the slab and without irregular edges joining the concrete slab face.

1 WO 87/06971 PCT/AU87/00129 The advantages of the invention will be apparent from the foregoing. The tradesman has only to cut the desired hole in the disc at the base of the sleeve and insert his pipework or other lines, with a labourer having a simple task in going around to the top of the slab and filling in the aperture with cement.

There is no need to provide a large patch around the pipework from underneath the slab to effect a neat finish, and there is no need to throw away any components or to fiddle with dubious supporting means for the cement filler. The resultant seal will be completely waterproof and fireproof compared with previous procedures.

The components offer the building industry a non-asbestos product which may be easily used with total effectiveness, the sleeves being fully tested and approved as fire-prevention materials. The system should prove more economical and easier to use in industrial, commercial and domestic buildings. The bottom disc is also made from materials which prevent the possibility of any two metals reacting together undesirably. Of course, the invention is applicable to all thicknesses of slabs, with the formwork thickness being typically one inch in most applications.

Whilst the present invention employs in one form a cover member forming an aperture the cover member being the exposed base of the dish-shaped body defining and locating an aperture when in place, the cover member itself may include a predetermined opening for receiving a pipe or service line and in this regard the plate or base portion 13 of the sleeve-holder 18 may have a concentric opening extending out to the periphery thereof and there may be provided extensions of the base for fixing purposes, in order to fix the sleeve holder to formwork 17.

Referring to Fig. 3 there is illustrated in r -u

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pictorial view an exemplary embodiment of the present invention illustrating an example of the many and varied applications of the present invention. As can be seen from Fig. 3, where like numerals have been used to illustrate like features, there is illustrated an aperture forming apparatus 30 attached to formwork 17, which may be made from plywood material. In this embodiment the sleeveholder 18 does not include a peripheral flange which extends into the concrete, although it may have this feature. The apparatus relies on the fire box 31 which represents an exposed recess defined by the box 31 having an aperture 21 defined by the through hole of sleeve member 12. The arrangement being that the sleeveholder is secured to the fie box 31 by means of outwardly extending e. tabs 32 and screws 33 whereby the whole apparatus 30 is retained in the poured slab substantially by means of the retention of the

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Accordingly the present invention advantageously requires that at least part of the apparatus has retention characteristics. Fire box 31 is secured to the formwork 17 by means of an elongate flange 34 and plurality of nails 35. On dismantling of the formwork the 2 0 fire box 31, sleeve-holder 18 and sleeve member 12 would normally be retained in the concrete slab, the fire box 31 may include extensions which extend into the poured concrete to enhance the retention of the fire box in the slab.

Referring now to Fig. 4 where again like numerals have been used to illustrate like features a further aperture forming ease apparatus 40 according to the invention is illustrated which includes an inverted dish-shaped body 41 which supports a sleeve member 12 or pipe, the sleeve member or pipe 12 in one arrangement being soldered or welded to an aperture formed in the base 42 of the inverted dish-shaped body 41 and extending into the hollow of the body 41. Sleeve member 12 has on its lower end a female end or coupling 43 for receiving a complimentary male pipe extension or coupling. The upper end 44 of the sleeve member 12 corresponds to a male coupling which may be inserted into a corresponding female coupling of another pipe, thereby enabling the joining of pipes through a floor or other slab. It will be realised that the o 7 -i rf^ -iuij[_ I-rm i 14 1 '1 7i I

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0e sleeve member 12 in this embodiment will be retained in the slab after pouring and curing of the settable material poured into the formwork 17 to extend upwardly therefrom and the space 46 about the female end 43 may be used after removal of the formwork 17 to enable a tradesman to gain access to the female end 43 for the purpose of joining to a suitable male end of a further pipe once the formwork 17 has been removed. The body 41 as before may include a peripheral flange 41' to enable it to be secured as by nailing to formwork 17 defining the boundary of a slab to be formed. The body 41 may also include a tubular extension 47 (shown in dotted outline) to provide additional support to the sleeve member 12 which may be a section of pipe, or other duct which penetrates the slab. In addition, a flange or other radial enlargement 15 of the type described in relation to the embodiment of Fig. 2 may be included to enhance the retention of the body 41 0. in the finished concrete slab or flooring.

Referring to Fig. 5 there is illustrated a sleeve member 12 constructed in accordance of one form of the invention where the sleeve member is made from a plurality of folding sections 22, 0 each of which when operatively folded such that edges 23 and 24 are secured together forms a cylindrical sleeve which may be inserted into any of the aforementioned sleeve-holders.

The hinges 25 enable the sleeve portions 22 to be folded inwardly in order to remove the sleeve from s finished concrete slab, the arrangement being that the cross-section of the hinged sleeve may be reduced to enable easy removal from the slab.

Referring now to Fig. 6, there is illustrated an aperture defining apparatus 50, where like numerals have been used to illustrate like features and a sleeve member 12 is illustrated operatively engaged with a sleeve-holder 18 which is of the basic form illustrated in relation to Fig. 2, however, in this embodiment the sleeve member 12 has a plurality of peripheral ii i; i'

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WO 87/06971 PCT/AU87/00129 12 extensions or corrugations 51 and is illustrated having a lid 52 to prevent concrete being poured about the sleeve member 12 frc,,. ntering into the aperture 21. The sleeve member also includes a flange 53 which covers a space 54 which is filled with a rubber sealing material which primarily is designed to prevent any galvanic or corrosive action between the metal of sleeve member 12 and the metal of sleeve-holder 18. Preferably the sleeve member 12 is a sleeve member of the type described in Fig. 5 and may be removed from the poured concrete slab to leave a plurality of furrows in the wall of the aperture defined by sleeve member 12. It will be appreciated that when the sleeve member 12 is removed from the slab the sleeve-holder 18 will remain in the slab and a pipe may be passed through aperture or an aperture extended therefrom and cement or other filler may be poured into the aperture 21 to secure any such pipe in position and the effect of the corrugations 51 will be to aid in the retention of the filler in aperture 21 once the filler has set.

It will be realised that many improvements and additions may be incorporated into the various parts of the apparatus illustrated in the drawings such as lids, protective lower coatings or plates, covering or other extensions attached to the exposed dish base to give aesthetic effect alternatively many insertions such as fire proof wads and cloths may be placed within the aperture about pipes or other service lines which pass through the aperture. Furthermore whilst it is preferable to provide a snll hole in the base of the sleeve-holders, it may be that a large hole may be provided and suitable external flashing or cQvering may be screwed to the periphery of such a hole in order to provide a reduced hole size, such flashing or cover may be made from a variety of materials including flexible materials such as rubber and the rubber may be made to i r* '4t .4 It WO 87/06971 PCT/AU87/00129 13 distort by pushing a pipe up past the rubber, the rubber having been attached to the base of the sleeve-holder.

Clearly there are many other variations on the present invention which will be apparent to those skilled in the art and whilst the above has been given by way of illustrating example of the invention, many modifications and variations may be made thereto without departing from the broad scope and ambit of the invention as herein set forth in the following claims.

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Claims (8)

1. Slab penetration apparatus for use in penetrating a slab during the formation thereof from material laid whilst wet and allowed to harden, said apparatus including a hollow generally dish-shaped body, said dish-shaped body being open at one end, means adjacent said open end of said body adapted to be releasably secured to formwork defining a boundary for one side of said slab during the formation thereof, a tubular member extending into said body from the side thereof opposite said open end so that one end thereof is disposed within said body, said tubular member being adapted to extend from said body at least to the opposite side of said slab and wherein said body is adapted to be anchored and thereby retained in said slab by the material thereof when the latter hardens so as to define a space surrounding said one end of said tubular member whereby to facilitate coupling of said tubular member to a further member.

2. Apparatus according to Claim 1 wherein said body includes a sleeve portion adapted to closely surround and support said tubular member.

3. Apparatus according to Claim 1 or Claim 2 wherein said body includes an outward projection adapted to facilitate retention of said body in said slab when said material thereof hardens.

4. Apparatus according to Claim 3 wherein said outward projection comprises an annular flange.

Apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims I wherein said body includes flange means adjacent said open end of said body, said flange means being adapted to be secured to said formwork.

6. Apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims and including coupling means for coupling of said tubular member to said further member.

7. Apparatus according to Claim 6 wherein said coupling means comprises a male/female coupling. 1 77 U Ii F' I ii I Il 1~ ii I I

8. Slab penetration apparatus substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to Fig. 4 of the accompanying drawings. DATED this fourth day of July 1990 PAUL ROBERTSON BY MY PATENT ATTORNEY JOHlN R.G. GARDNER a 0 a* 0 S. aS S 0 0 *0 0a 0 S 600