Title of Invention

GALVANIZED STEEL WIRE ROPE NET (GSWR) SYSTEM FOR BOULDER FALL PROTECTION

Abstract

A galvanized steel wire rope net system, for boulder rock fall protection, comprising a lower portion and an upper portion, the said lower portion being in the form of galvanized steel wire rope net made of a plurality of horizontal rope members and a plurality of vertical rope members placed in spaced apart relationship in respective direction, the two ropes at the intersections/junctions being tucked together so that the axes of both the horizontal and vertical rope members lie almost in the same plane; the said upper portion comprises a plurality of vertical ropes connected with the vertical rope members of the rope net in the lower portion, the free ends of each of the vertical members of the upper portion provided with a loop and anchor means provided for anchoring the upper portion in the ground, at the top portion of the hill/mountain.

Full Text

FORM-2 THE PATENTS ACT, 1970 (39 of 1970) COMPLETE Specification (Section 10, rule 13) A GALVANIZED STEEL WIRE ROPE NET (GSWR) SYSTEM FOR BOULDER ROCK FALL PROTECTION (a)GARWARE WALL ROPES LTD. ofPlotNo.ll,D-l Block, M.I.D.C, Chinchwad, Pune 411 019, Maharashtra, India, an Indian Company; and (b)KONKAN RAILWAY CORPORATION LTD. of Belapur Bhavan, Sector 11, P.O.Box No.9, C.B.O.Belapur, Navi Mumbai 400 614, Maharashtra, India, an Indian Company THE FOLLOWING SPECIFICATION PARTICULARLY DESCRIBES THE NATURE OF THIS INVENTION AND THE MANNER IN WHICH IT IS TO BE PERFORMED:- This invention relates to a galvanized steel wire rope net (GSWR) system for boulder rock fall protection. More particularly this invention relates to a galvanized steel wire rope net system to be used in mountainous terrains for protection against boulder rock fall, mud slides, avalanche and the like, which system while being economic fire resistant and rust proof provides axes of vertical and horizontal ropes almost in one plane, making the system more homogeneous and suitable for optimum loading. Mountainous terrains and cuttings are prone to the problem of rock fall especially during the monsoon. Rock fall could be a serious hazard threatening the smooth operation of rail/road traffic lines and often results in accidents resulting into loss of life and property. Various geological, geotechnical, topographical and climatic conditions like, nature of rock, degree of weathering and featuring, size of fragments, height and steepness of slope, intensity of rainfall, freezing and thawing etc. govern the magnitude of the problem. Rope nets made of high strength ropes such as polymer ropes or steel ropes are found as the ideal solution for rockfall protection. They can be installed for heights ranging from 5 M to 60 M and can be fabricated so as to suit the site conditions. The factors, which could influence the selection of a particular rope net are; (i) Extent of fracture of rocks at cuttings. (ii) Size of the fractured rocks. (iii) Height of the cutting (iv) Vulnerability to fire Depending upon the above factors rope nets made of polymer ropes or steel ropes are selected. The polymer rope net are generally made of poly olefm or poly propylene ropes of 10 mm to 16 mm in diameter and having very high thermal, abrasion and U.V resistance. The mesh size can be varied from 100 mm to 300 mm depending upon the sizes of the fractured rock and the strength required. The polymer rope net are appropriate where medium tensile strength of approximately 6 to 8 Ton/M are required, i.e say to retain small to medium size boulders. Besides the strength limitation these are vulnerable to fire. As such the polymer rope net provides excellent protection in monsoon, in summer season due to hot surroundings and dry grass prevailing on mountains there are instances of fire, damaging the polymer rope net completely. For boulder rock fall protection chicken mesh, intermittently provided with steel wire ropes in diagonal have also been used. However in the event of rock falling, the entire load of the stone is not transferred to the steel wire ropes and the hexagonal chicken mesh is not rigid enough to give the desired protection and simultaneous action of the mesh and ropes is not ensured being heterogeneous construction, which does not ensure equitable load sharing, this system proved defective and unsuitable. Further its ability to adapt to the shape of ground is also limited due to rigidity and the system is uneconomical too. Steel wire rope net is prone to rusting and thus not suitable. Further suggestions to use rust proof material such as stainless steel wire rope net, copper wire rope net and the like are not practicable due to its high cost and possibility of theft. The main object of this invention is to provide a galvanized steel wire rope net galvanized steel wire rope net system for boulder rock fall protection which is rust proof, fire resistant and is of the strength suitable for small medium and large size boulders in which axes of horizontal and vertical rope members are in one plane making the system homogeneous and suitable for optimum loading, the vertical members sustain the load of boulder rock and horizontal members remain hugging with the rock terrain contour. Another object of this invention is to provide a galvanized steel wire rope net system which is very light, strong and has low elongation, having clamps at the inter sections for high aperture rigidity. A further object of this invention is to provide galvanized steel wire rope net system in which horizontal rope members are not provided in the upper portion near the anchoring area of the rope net making it flexible and more economic. A further object of this invention is to provide a galvanized steel wire rope net system which is made like hanger and pendent hanger having vertical rope or wire members hooked to the vertical rope members of the rope net and the other end provided with loop for anchoring with the help of spikes and the like. According to this invention, there is provided a galvanized steel wire rope net system, for boulder rock fall protection, comprising a lower portion and an upper portion, the said lower portion being in the form of galvanized steel wire rope net made of a plurality of horizontal rope members and a plurality of vertical rope members placed in spaced apart relationship in respective direction, the two ropes at the intersections/junctions being tucked together so that the axes of both the horizontal and vertical rope members lie almost in the same plane; the said upper portion comprises a plurality of vertical ropes connected with the vertical rope members of the rope net in the lower portion, the free ends of each of the vertical members of the upper portion provided with a loop and anchor means provided for anchoring the upper portion in the ground, at the top portion of the hill/mountain. Typically, the horizontal and vertical rope members are formed of a plurality of galvanized steel wires/strands twisted together. Typically, the two ropes at the junction/intersection are tucked together by dividing the strands of one of the rope member, to form an eye opening and passing the other rope member there through. Typically, the strands of vertical rope member are divided out to form the eye opening and the horizontal rope member passes through the said opening, forming a tucked intersection/junction. Typically, the vertical rope members of the lower rope net portion are extended to integrally form the upper portion and the free ends of the extended vertical rope members are provided with loops for anchoring. Typically, the upper portion comprising of vertical rope members, is separately formed as a hanger, and connected to the vertical rope members of the lower rope net portion as a pendent with the help of hooks. Typically, the diameter of rope members and the pitch/aperture size are selected according to the strength required for rock fall protection. Typically, the rope diameter of the vertical and horizontal rope members, is same or different. Typically, the diameter of vertical rope members is more than the diameter of horizontal rope members. Typically, the upper portion consists of galvanized steel wires, each wire provided with a loop at upper end for anchoring and a hook at lower end, for connecting to the vertical rope members of the rope net. Typically, the tucked intersections/junctions are of the rope net clamped with the help of a clamp/clamping means. Typically, the clamp comprises a sheet metal male part and a sheet metal female part, the female part having four extended leg shoes which are bent to form a cup shaped female member, the tucked intersection/junction of the rope net kept over the female part, the male part kept over the junction and the edges of the cup shaped female part being bent and pressed over the male part to form a firm and rigid intersection/junction. Typically, the intersections/junctions of the rope net are clamped by using any fixing means such as nuts and bolts, rivets and the like. According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a tool for clamping the intersection/junction of the galvanized steel wire rope net, comprising a base provided with four grooves, for accommodating therein, the cup shaped female part of the clamp and the junction of the rope net placed over the said female part, followed by the male part and a hammer provided with a tip to bent the free edges of the cup shaped female part and a pressure system adopted to be applied on the said hammer for its pressing/ramming to form a compact and firm clamped joint. Typically, the intersection is clamped manually. Typically, the intersection is clamped by using a hydraulic or pneumatic pressure. The invention will now be described with the help of accompanying drawings in which : Fig. 1 Shows in an end view, a typical mountain terrain having railway where galvanized steel wire rope net system for bounder rock fall protection, according to this invention, has been provided. Fig. 2 Shows in elevation an anchor means used for anchoring the galvanized steel wire rope net. Fig. 3 Shows side view of galvanized steel wire rope net system according to an embodiment of this invention. Figs.(4a) & (4b) Show in plan views the mail and female parts of the clamp, used at the intersections/junctions of the horizontal and vertical rope members, according to this invention. Fig. 5 shows in perspective view, a junction/intersection of the horizontal and vertical rope members, in order to keep their axes in almost one plane, according to this invention. Fig. 6 shows in plan a junction/intersection, of the horizontal and vertical rope members, clamped with the help of the clamp, according to this invention. Fig. 7 shows in blown up perspective view a tool or device, alongwith male and female parts of the clamp, used for clamping the junction/intersection of the horizontal and vertical rope members, according to an embodiment of this invention. Referring to figures 1 to 7, for laying a railway tract (1) a fairly levelled portion (2) is prepared by cutting rock (3), which may include mud or earth, in a typical mountainous terrain as shown in fig. 1. Due to this rock cutting there is always a danger that the rock cut portion or boulder may fall on the railway track (1), resulting into an accident causing a great loss to human lives and property. Other wise also it may cause traffic disruption. To eliminate/prevent boulder rock falling on railway track/roadway, according to this invention a galvanized steel wire rope net system (26) is provided against the cut rock (3) GSWR system (26) preferably comprises a lower rope net portion (4) and an upper portion (5). The upper portion (5) is anchored firmly at the top portion (6) of the mountain/hill, by using anchoring means (7). The lower rope net portion (4) consists of a plurality of horizontal rope members(9) and a plurality of vertical rope member(8) tucked/engaged together at a desired pitch or aperture or spacing according to the strength of the rope net depending upon the boulder rock to be prevented from falling. Each of the horizont rope members (9, 9.1 to 9.4), as shown and marked in Fig. 3 and the vertical rope members (8, 8.1 to 8.4), as shown and marked in Fig. 3 are made of a plurality of galvanized steel wires, called strands, twisted together to form a rope. The junctions/intersections (10) of the horizontal and vertical rope members of the rope net are formed by dividing out one of the rope in two parts forming an eye opening (23) and passing the other rope there through, as shown in Fig. 5, there by keeping the axes of horizontal rope members (9) and vertical rope members (8) in one plane. The upper portion (5) of the system preferably consists of only the vertical rope members as shown and marked (5.1 to 5.5) in Fig. 3. The horizontal rope members are not required in the upper portion (5) as it is lying on plain surface at the hill top, as shown in Fig. 1 and the tension/ load of falling rock, comes on vertical members only. This results in a significant saving of galvanized steel wire rope net material and economising the system. The free ends of the vertical rope members are formed into a loop as marked and shown (25, 25.1, 25.2, 25.3) in Fig. 3. /The vertical rope members (8) of the rope net (4) may be extended into the upper portion (5) and provided with loops (25) at the upper free ends to make the upper portion (5) as a integral part of rope net (4). As an alternative the upper portion (5) may be formed separately as a hanger and attached to the vertical rope members (8) of the rope net (4), like a pendant, with the help of hooks, as marked and shown by (24, 24.1 to 24.4) in Fig. 3. At the intersections/junctions (10) of the rope net (4) the strands of the vertical rope members (8) are separated and the horizontal rope members (9) are inserted through the openings (23) to engage the same, thereby forming rope net, having axes of both the rope members in one plane. In order to achieve high rigidity and firmness, specifically in larger pitch/aperture ropenents, the intersections/junctions are clamped by using a clamp (11). The clamp (11) is made of some strong sheet metal, preferably galvanised steel and consists of a male part (14) shown in fig. 4(a) and a female part (15), shown in fig. 4(b). The female part (15) has four extended leg shoes, indicated by (16.1 to 16.4) in fig. 4 (b), which are 90 degree apart from each other. The extended leg shoes are bent at portion indicated by (17.1 to 17.4) is fig. 4 (b), to form a cup shaped female part (18), shown in fig. 7. For clamping, the tucked junction (10) of the ropenent(4), is placed into the cup shaped female part (18) and the male part (14) is placed over the junction (10) and then the four legs of the female part(18) are pressed over the male part (14), thereby clamping the junction firmly. As shown in fig. 7, a suitable and simple tool has also been described which comprises a base (19) provided with four slots/grooves (20.1), for accommodating the cup shaped female part (18) of the clamp, over which, junction (10) of rope net (not shown) is placed and then the male part (14) of the clamp is placed. After this a hammer (21) with its tip (22) is pressed or rammed, which folds the tips of the female part (18) on the male part (14) resulting into a compact and firm clamped joint (11), as shown and marked (11.1 to 11.4) is fig. 3. For rock fall protection the galvanized steel wire rope net system (26) is carried in folded/rolled position to the top of the mountain or hill. The loops (25) at the upper ends of the vertical rope members (8) are anchored with the help of anchors (7) or spikes or nails, hammered down at the top of hill (6) and then the rope net system (26) is spread against the rock portion (3). The horizontal rope member takes the contour of the rock portion (3) and vertical rope members which provide high tensile strength and low elongation prevent boulder rocks from falling. The diameter of rope member and the pitch of the rope net may vary as per requirement. The tool used for clamping may be manually operated or hydraulically operated. As a variation other damping systems such as nut bolts and the like may also be used. The galvanized steel wire rope net system of this invention does not rust and does not catch fire therefore it is more effective and durable. The above description with reference to figures of the drawings is given for better understanding of the invention rather than to limit its scope and ambit. We Claim: 1. A galvanized steel wire rope net system, for boulder rock fall protection, comprising a lower portion and an upper portion, the said lower portion being in the form of galvanized steel wire rope net made of a plurality of horizontal rope members and a plurality of vertical rope members placed in spaced apart relationship in respective direction, the two ropes at the intersections/junctions being tucked together so that the axes of both the horizontal and vertical rope members lie almost in the same plane; the said upper portion comprises a plurality of vertical ropes connected with the vertical rope members of the rope net in the lower portion, the free ends of each of the vertical members of the upper portion provided with a loop and anchor means provided for anchoring the upper portion in the ground, at the top portion of the hill/mountain. 2. A galvanized steel wire rope net system for boulder rock fall protection, substantially as herein described and illustrated in figures 1 to 7 of the drawings accompanying this specification. Dated this 15th day of March 2001.

Documents:

250-mum-2001-abstract(15-3-2001).doc

250-mum-2001-abstract(15-3-2001).pdf

250-mum-2001-abstract(amended)-(27-6-2004).pdf

250-mum-2001-abstract(granted)-(27-10-2005).pdf

250-mum-2001-agreement(26-11-2001).pdf

250-mum-2001-cancelled pages(13-12-2004).pdf

250-mum-2001-claims(15-3-2001).doc

250-mum-2001-claims(15-3-2001).pdf

250-mum-2001-claims(amended)-(27-6-2004).pdf

250-mum-2001-claims(amended)-(7-1-2005).pdf

250-mum-2001-claims(granted)-(27-10-2005).pdf

250-mum-2001-correspondence 1(20-5-2004).pdf

250-mum-2001-correspondence 2(7-1-2005).pdf

250-mum-2001-correspondence(ipo)-(27-10-2005).pdf

250-mum-2001-description(complete)-(15-3-2001).pdf

250-mum-2001-description(granted)-(27-10-2005).pdf

250-mum-2001-drawing(15-3-2001).pdf

250-mum-2001-drawing(granted)-(27-10-2005).pdf

250-mum-2001-form 1(15-3-2001).pdf

250-mum-2001-form 1(7-1-2005).pdf

250-mum-2001-form 13(15-12-2004).pdf

250-mum-2001-form 13(27-7-2004).pdf

250-mum-2001-form 19(3-9-2003).pdf

250-mum-2001-form 2(15-3-2001).doc

250-mum-2001-form 2(15-3-2001).pdf

250-mum-2001-form 2(granted)-(27-10-2005).pdf

250-mum-2001-form 2(title page)-(15-3-2001).pdf

250-mum-2001-form 2(title page)-(granted)-(27-10-2005).pdf

250-mum-2001-form 26(27-7-2004).pdf

250-mum-2001-form 3(2-12-2004).pdf

250-mum-2001-form 3(7-1-2005).pdf

250-mum-2001-form 6(26-11-2001).pdf

250-mum-2001-power of authority(15-3-2001).pdf

250-mum-2001-specification(amended)-(27-6-2004).pdf

250-mum-2001-specification(amended)-(7-1-2005).pdf