Guy wire support anchoring device

Abstract

A guy wire anchoring device is provided which can be used to hold a tower in place. The device features a container which has a plurality of solid side panels, which are connected to two adjacent side panels using a side hinge mechanism. As a result, the container can be reversably moved from an essentially flat, folded orientation, to an expanded empty container orientation when un-folded. The container also includes at least one base plate which is hingeably mounted to the lower edge of at least one side panel of the container, and which can be moved to a position wherein it at least partially closes the opening at the bottom of said empty container. The container is adapted to be filled with a suitable, local material such as sand, aggregate, or the like, in order to increase the weight of the guy wire anchoring device. The device includes a guy wire anchoring bracket to which guy wires can be attached. The device is easily stored, and can be easily transported to the tower location for use as a guy wire anchoring device.

Claims

1. A tower system comprising a tower, one or a plurality of guy wires attached at one end to said tower and attached at an opposite end thereof to at least one guy wire anchoring device, wherein said at least one of the guy wire anchoring devices for holding said tower in place, comprise a container having: a plurality of solid side panels each of the side panels having two side edges, and a side hinge mechanism at each of the side edges thereof, each of the side hinge mechanism hingeably connects each of said side panels to two of the side panels, whereby said side hinge mechanisms allow the container to be reversably moved from an essentially flat, folded orientation, to an expanded empty container orientation when un-folded; one or more base plates hingeably mounted to a lower edge of at least one of the side panels of the container using a lower hinge mechanism; and a guy wire attachment bracket on at least one of the side panels or base plates, to which a guy wire can be attached, wherein said container is adapted to be filled with a suitable material to increase the weight of the guy wire anchoring device, when said container is in said empty container orientation, and wherein said container has been filled with a suitable material.

2. A tower system as claimed in claim 1 comprising multiple guy wire anchoring devices located around the tower.

3. A tower system as claimed in claim 2 wherein two or more of the containers are located adjacent to one another, and/or connected to each other, in order to increase the total weight of the containers, at any given location.

4. A tower system as claimed in claim 1 wherein said container has between 3 and 10 side panels.

5. A tower system as claimed in claim 1 wherein said container has between 4 and 8 side panels.

6. A tower system as claimed in claim 1 wherein said container has 4 or 6 side panels.

7. A tower system as claimed in claim 1 wherein said container, in said empty container orientation, has a rectangular, square or hexagon shape.

8. A tower system as claimed in claim 1 wherein said container, in said empty container orientation, has an even number of sides, and said container is essentially symmetrical through at least one axis, in said empty container orientation.

9. A tower system as claimed in claim 8 wherein said container, in said empty container orientation, is essentially symmetrical through at least one axis and the at least one axis passes through an opposing set of side hinge mechanisms.

10. A tower system as claimed in claim 1 wherein said container has at least two base plates hingeably attached to the lower edge of at least two of the side panels, and which base plates are located on opposite sides of said container, in said empty container orientation.

11. A tower system as claimed in claim 1 wherein said container has a plurality of base plates which are hingeably attached to the lower edge of each of the side panels.

12. A tower system as claimed in claim 11 wherein said base plates are positioned so as to be co-planar with, and extending from said side panels, when said container is in the essentially flat, folded orientation.

13. A tower system as claimed in claim 12 wherein said base plates at least partially cover an opening at a bottom of the container, when said container is in the unfolded, empty container orientation.

14. A tower system as claimed in claim 13 wherein said base plates overlap, one with the other, or are adjacent, one with the other, in the unfolded, empty container orientation.

15. A tower system as claimed in claim 1 wherein said suitable material is a material local to said tower.

16. A tower system as claimed in claim 15 wherein said suitable material is sand, stones, rocks, dirt, aggregate, or combination thereof.

17. A tower system as claimed in claim 1 wherein said container additionally comprises lifting hooks at or near an upper edge of said container side panels.

18. A tower system as claimed in claim 1 wherein said side panels of said container have a width or height of between 0.5 and 3 meters.

19. A tower system as claimed in claim 1 wherein said side panels of said container have a width or height of between 1 and 1.5 meters.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) Embodiments of this invention will now be described by way of example only in association with the accompanying drawings in which:

(2) FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a guy wire anchoring device of the present invention, in an unfolded orientation;

(3) FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the guy wire anchoring device of FIG. 1, in a partially folded orientation;

(4) FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the guy wire anchoring device of FIGS. 1 and 2, in a completely folded position;

(5) FIG. 4 is a view showing a tower with a plurality of guy wire anchoring devices located around the tower;

(6) FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a further embodiment of the present invention, in an unfolded orientation;

(7) FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the guy wire anchoring device of FIG. 5, in a completely folded position;

(8) FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a still further embodiment of the present invention, in an unfolded orientation;

(9) FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a yet still further embodiment of the present invention, in a folded orientation;

(10) FIG. 9 is a perspective view of two anchors shown in a side-by-side orientation;

(11) FIG. 10 is a perspective view of two anchors, shown with one anchor atop of another;

(12) FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the embodiment shown in FIG. 8, in a partially unfolded orientation;

(13) FIG. 12 is a perspective view of the embodiment of FIGS. 8 and 9, in a fully unfolded orientation;

(14) FIG. 13 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the present invention in a partially unfolded orientation; and

(15) FIG. 14 is a perspective view of the anchor shown in FIG. 13, in a fully unfolded orientation.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

(16) The novel features which are believed to be characteristic of the present invention, as to its structure, organization, use and method of operation, together with further objectives and advantages thereof, will be better understood from the following drawings in which a presently preferred embodiment of the invention will now be illustrated by way of example only. In the drawings, like reference numerals depict like elements.

(17) It is expressly understood, however, that the drawings are for the purpose of illustration and description only and are not intended as a definition of the limits of the invention. Also, unless otherwise specifically noted, all of the features described herein may be combined with any of the above aspects, in any combination.

(18) Referring to FIG. 1, a guy wire anchoring device 10, is shown in a completely unfolded position, and ready for use as an anchoring device. Anchoring device 10 is square shaped, having four sides 12. Each side has a width of 2 meters, and a height of 1 meter, and thus provides a container volume of 4 m.sup.3. On a first set of opposite corners, where sides 12 intersect with one another, side hinges 14 which move over an angle of 0 to 90, are provided. On the other corners where sides 12 insert, side hinges 16 are provided which move over an angle of 90 to 180.

(19) At the bottom edge of each of side panels 12 are base plates 18, which base plates 18 are connected to each of sides 12 by bottom hinges 20. Bottom hinges 20 move over an angle of from 90 to 180.

(20) In FIG. 1, base plates 18 are rectangular in shape, and have a width of 2 meters, and a height of 0.5 meters. In the unfolded container orientation shown in FIG. 1, base plates 18 overlap, one with the other.

(21) At the bottom edge of each of sides 12 are guy wire anchoring brackets 22. Two of these brackets 22 are shown on each side, but more or fewer brackets can be used.

(22) Lifting hooks 24 are also positioned at the top of sides 12, and these hooks 24 can be used to lift anchoring device 10. Once lifted, completely unfolded anchor device 10 can be moved to a suitable position, and then it can be filled with sand.

(23) For the 4 m.sup.3 device shown in FIG. 1, up to 6.4 tonnes of sand can be used to fill the container.

(24) Anchor device 10 also includes a locking device that includes a C-shaped locking pin 26 which is adapted to fit into tubes 28 on the inner surfaces of sides 12. When pin 26 is inserted into tubes 28 (on adjacent side panels 12), the sides 12 of device 10 are locked into position.

(25) In FIGS. 2 and 3, the same guy wire anchoring device as shown in FIG. 1, is shown in partially folded (FIG. 2) and completely folded (FIG. 3) positions. In partially folded orientation (FIG. 2), pins 26 have been removed, and base plates 18 have been rotated using bottom hinges 20, and are now coplanar with sides 12.

(26) In FIG. 3, side panels 12 have been completely folded, using hinges 14 and 16, so that side panels 12 are now adjacent to one another. After making these folds, device 10 is essentially flat, as seen in FIG. 3, and has a width of 4 meters, and a height of 1.5 meters. For a side panel thickness of 2.5 cm, the thickness of folded container 10, in FIG. 3, would be approximately 5 cm. In this configuration, container 10 and can be easily stored or transported.

(27) In FIG. 4, a tower 30 is shown in a vertical position in a sandy area 36. Around tower 30 are four anchoring device 10, as shown in FIG. 1. Tower 30 is connected to anchoring devices 10 by four guy wires 32. Each of anchoring devices 10 is filled with 6 tonnes of sand that act to hold tower 30 in position.

(28) Anchoring devices 10 can be used on a permanent basis, or on a temporary basis. Once the anchoring devices are no longer needed, the sand can be removed from the anchoring device 10, and the device can be folded into the orientation shown in FIG. 3.

(29) It should also be noted that when devices 10 are used, the open top of each device can be covered by a cover (not shown). The cover can be provided using any convenient means, including a flexible tarp or the like, or a more rigid cover such as a cover made of metal, plastic, wood, or the like. This cover aids in ensuring that the sand is not accidentally or inadvertently removed from devices 10 by, for example, wind or rain.

(30) In FIG. 5, a further embodiment of the present invention is shown wherein container 40 has six side panels 42, and six base panels 44, and thus forms a hexagon shaped container. Each of side panels 42 has a width of 1.2 meters, and a height of 1 meter. Base panels 44 have a height of 0.5 meters, and a proximate edge width of 1.2 meters at a location adjacent to side panels 42, to a width of 0.6 meters at their distal edge. Thus, the sides of side panels 42 angle inward at an angle of approximately 60. In the unfolded configuration in FIG. 5, base panels 42 do not overlap, one with the other, but the edges of the base panels rest roughly adjacent to one another.

(31) In FIG. 6, container 40 is shown in its folded position, and has an overall width of 3.6 meters, and a height of 1.5 meters.

(32) In FIG. 7, a further embodiment of a hexagonal container 50 is shown having side panels 52 of similar size to those shown in FIGS. 5 and 6. Base panels 54 however, are rectangular, and thus, in the unfolded position, base panels 54 will overlap with each other.

(33) In FIG. 8, a further embodiment of a square anchor device 60 is shown in a folded orientation. Device 60 has side panels 62 and base panels 64. In FIG. 9, two of these anchoring devices 60 and 60A, are shown in an unfolded orientation, and positioned adjacent to each other, on one side. External clips 66 are used to lock side panels 62 in position, by clipping onto the corners of side panels 62.

(34) External clips 66 also act to lock adjacent anchoring devices 60 to each other, by clipping two side panels 62 to each other.

(35) In FIG. 10, four external clips 66 can be used at each corner of anchoring device 60, and thus act as a platform on which a second anchoring device 60 can be placed. This allows a first anchoring device 60 to be used as a support for a second anchoring device 60B. Clips 66 on the top of second anchoring device 60B can be used to lock the corners of anchoring device 60B in place, or can also be used as a support for a third anchoring device.

(36) In FIG. 11, anchoring device 70 is shown in a partially unfolded position, wherein side panels 72 have been separated from each other, but base panels 74 still extend straight downward. Clips 66 have been inserted to lock side panels 72 in position. In this embodiment, however, one end of a link chain 76, with a handle 78 at the opposite end, is attached to the inside of each base panel 74. Link chain 76 extends from base panel 74 upwards through a slot 80 located near the top of side panels 72.

(37) In operation, link chains 76 are moved to the opening 82 at the end of each slot 80, so that the link chains 76 can be pulled using handles 78. This raises base panels 74 into their operative position. Once base panels 74 have been raised into position, link chains 76 can be slid into slots 80, which locks link chains 76 in position. As such, base panels 74 are locked into position, as is shown in FIG. 12.

(38) In FIGS. 13 and 14, the same design and chain operation as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12 is provided. In this case, however, anchoring device 90 includes teeth 92 at the bottom of each side panel 94, and teeth 92 are designed to dig into the soil or sand when anchoring device 90 is put into place. Teeth 92 can be any suitable size or shape, but in the embodiment shown, teeth 92 extend 10 to 15 cm below the lower edge of side panels 94. Also, a different attachment point 96 is shown, which attachment point 96 is essentially flush with side panels 94. This eliminates the protrusion of the attachment point outward from the sides of side panels, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 3.

(39) Thus, it is apparent that there has been provided, in accordance with the present invention, a guy wire anchoring device which fully satisfies the goals, objects, and advantages set forth hereinbefore. Therefore, having described specific embodiments of the present invention, it will be understood that alternatives, modifications and variations thereof may be suggested to those skilled in the art, and that it is intended that the present specification embrace all such alternatives, modifications and variations as fall within the scope of the appended claims.

(40) Additionally, for clarity and unless otherwise stated, the word comprise and variations of the word such as comprising and comprises, when used in the description and claims of the present specification, is not intended to exclude other additives, components, integers or steps. Further, the invention illustratively disclosed herein suitably may be practised in the absence of any element which is not specifically disclosed herein.

(41) Moreover, words such as substantially or essentially, when used with an adjective or adverb is intended to enhance the scope of the particular characteristic; e.g., substantially planar is intended to mean planar, nearly planar and/or exhibiting characteristics associated with a planar element.

(42) Further, use of the terms he, him, or his, is not intended to be specifically directed to persons of the masculine gender, and could easily be read as she, her, or hers, respectively.

(43) Also, while this discussion has addressed prior art known to the inventor, it is not an admission that all art discussed is citable against the present application.