Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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This application is a division of application Serial
No. 305,673 filed June 16, 1978.
This invention relates to a method of assembling a
portable structure particularly suited for use as a bin
for storage of agricultural products such as grain.
Grain storage can be a problem for farmers because the
volume required to be stored varies greatly from time to
time and place to place. It is often not economically
feasible for a farmer to maintain a permanent grain
storage facility capable of handling the maximum amount of
grain which he might wish to store.
Maximum storage requirements cannot be predicted since
they occur as a result of such diverse and uncertain
factors as crop yield, market conditions, transportation,
weather, etc.
It is thus desirable that a portable storage means be
available which can be stocked by local dealers and can be
purchased and transported by the farmer for quick and
immediate erection.
Accordingly, it is the object of this invention to
provide a method of erecting a portable structure which
can be carried out with a minimum of labour, skill and
time.
In accordance with this invention there is provided a
method of assembling a portable structure on a surface for
storage of material such as grain, comprising the steps of
(a) erecting a first portion of a wire mesh outer support
wall in a semi-circle; (b) fastening to the erected
portion of the support wall a portion of a flexible single
piece plastic liner having a circular floor extending at
its periphery into a cylindrical wall with an open top;
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(c) erecting the remaining portion of the wire mesh
support wall to form a closed circle and fastening the
plastic liner thereto; (d) draping an upper portion of the
cylindrical wall of the plastic liner over the top of the
support wall; (e) temporarily anchoring the top of the
support wall; (f) filling the structure with said material
up to the level of the top of the support wall at the
periphery with the material forming a cone towards the
centre, the top of the structure being entirely open
during such filling step; and (g) removing the temporary
anchoring and bringing together the open top of the
plastic liner over said cone to enclose said material.
In drawings which illustrate embodiments of the
invention, Figure 1 illustrates a filled storage structure
when sealed.
Figure 2 is a sectional view through the centre of the
illed structure illustrated in Figure 1.
Figures 3A to 3I illustrate stages in the erection and
filling procedure.
Figure 4 illustrates the structure fitted with a
generally conical cover.
Figure 5 illustrates s~iral connecting means for
connecting the ends of a wire mesh wall.
Figure 6 is an enlarged fragmentary view of a portion
of Figure 3F with part of the liner cut away.
Figure 7 is a section on 7-7 in Figure 6.
These drawings and the description below include
features that are claimed in one or other of further
divisional applications Serial Nos. 3~Gs-o and 37/~Z_
filed concurrently herewith.
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DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
As shown in Figures 1 and 2, an assembled structure
comprises a flexible, plastic liner 12 having a circular
floor 12a extending at its periphery into a cylindrical
wall 12b. Before filling the wall 12b has an open top.
After filling, the upper part of the wall 12b is folded in
to form a roof portion 12c and provide a weatherproof
enclosure. An external supporting wall 10 provides
lateral support to the plastic liner 12. The wall 10
which is cylindrical in form is composed of wire mesh
strip and is anchored to the ground by pegs 17.
Mounted along the top of the wall 10 is a protective
strip of plastic tubing 13 having an opening at the bottom
thereof fitted over the top edge of the wire mesh of the
wall 10. The plastic tubing 13 is adapted to protect the
liner 12 against being torn by the top of the wall 10
during assembly of the structure and during loading and
unloading. Cords 23 are fixed to the top of the wall
portion of the liner for the purpose of securing it
closed, after filling. Ties 20 are fixed to the outside
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of the li;ler ~bove its 100r portion for the purpose of
. securing the liner to the wall 10. It has been found that
i~ is of assistance in the erection of the structure to
have a line 2~ on the inside surface of the wall portion
12b of the liner coinciding with the top of the wall 10,
when assembled. It is also useful for assembly purposes
to have a seam or line 26 marking a diameter on the floor
portion 12a.
The structure can be erected by two men in the
following steps.
(a) Using a peg 50 and a cord 51 (Fig. 3A), two
concentric circles are marked on the ground.
(b) Pegs 17, 18 are driven into the ground (Figs. 3B
and 3C) at regular intervals on the two circles.
(c) One half lOa of the wire mesh strip (Fig. 3Cj
which forms the outer wall, is unwound and is set up in a
half circle immediately inside the inner circle of pegs
17. Part of the rodent guard ~3 (see below) is placed at
this time inside the base o~ the standing wire mesh strip.
(d) The bottom wire of the mesh lOa is hooked under
the hooks of pegs 17.
(e) The liner 12 is fastened to the wire mesh lOa by
means of ties 20 which are attached to the liner (Fig. 3D).
The entire liner 12 is then completely placed inside the
inner circle of pegs.
(f) The remaining half lOb of the wire mesh strip is
uncoiled, positioned inside the inner circle and hooked to
the remaining pegs 17 (Fig. 3E). The remaining portion of
the rodent guard 43 is positioned between the liner and
the wire mesh strip. The ends of the wire mesh strip are
over~apped and are firmly secured (see below), to complete
the circular wall.
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(g) The protective plastic tubiny ]3 (Fig. 2) is
then mounted on top of the wire mesh circular wall 10,
remaining ties 20 on the liner 12 are tied to the wire
mesh and the top portion 12d of the cylindrical wall 12b
of tile plastic liner 12 is draped over the top of the wall
10 (Fig. 3F) with an excess of material lying on the ground
at 12e. At this point it will be seen that the diametrical
line 26 on the floor 12a of the liner should be straight,
the line 25 marking the outside of the floor 12a should
coincide with the bottom of the wall 12b and the line 24
on the inside of the liner wall 12b should coincide with
the top of the wall 10.
(h) In order to temporarily secure the structure
against winds until it is filled, it is anchored by means
of hooks 27 (Figs. 3F and 6) which are attached to the pegs
18 in the outer circle by cords 19. Hooks 27 are adapted
to prevent snagging or tearing of the liner ]2.
- (i) The structure which is shown in Figure 3F is now
ready for filling. The ability to load and unload the bin
structure with the top completely open avoids the danger
associated with filling closed containers with grain.
During filling the auger 54 should be placed directly over
the centre of the structure (Fig. 3G). It will be
appreciated that, in filling the bin, the top of the grain
assumes a conical shape 55 with an angle corresponding to
the angle of repose of the grain.
(j) After the bin has been filled the anchoring
means 18, 19 and 27 are removed and the upper portion 12d
of the cylindrical wall 12b of the plastic liner 12 which
has been draped over the support wall 10 is placed over
the top of the grain (Fig. 3H) to form the roof portion
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1. c. The lin~r 12 top is then gathered at the centre and
passed through a hoop 22 and the resultin~ flap 15 is tied
down to the wall 10 by means of the cords 23 (Fig. 3I).
Since the angle of the top surface of the grain is the
angle of repose of the grain, the upper portion of the
liner wall 12b which forms the roof 12c merely rests
against the grain and there is no lateral pressure on this
portion of the liner and hence no need for additional
support. In the event that aeration of the contents of
the structure is required flap 15 may be untied and an
aerator introduced through the opening in the liner inside
the hoop 22.
(k) A netting 11 (Figs. 1 and 2) is then placed over
the entire roof portion 12c of the structure and is secured
to the wall 10 in order to prevent disturbances by high
winds.
(1) In an alternative embodiment (Fig. 4) the netting
11 is replaced by a cover 30 of a ~enerally truncated
conical shape. The lining 12 and the cover 30 are composed
of a ~ en polyethylene sold under the trade mark F~BRENE.
(m` The structure also includes a rodent guard (Figs.
4, 5, 6 and 7) consisting of a flexible strip of metal 43
approximately one foot wide and of a length slightly
greater than the diameter of the structure. This strip
is placed between the lining 12 and the outer wall 10 in
order to deter rodents from eating through the lining.
(n) The appratus also includes a device for connect-
ing together the two ends of the wire mesh outer wall 10
consisting of wire coils 42 having a pitch of approximately
one inch and a diameter of approximately one inch. In
order to attach the ends of the outer wall the ends of the
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wire ~c~ih strip are placed together and overlapped at 41
and each coil 42 is threaded into place by a screwing
action so that it surrounds and connects respective
vertical wires on opposite ends of the wire mesh strip.
It should be appreciated that modifications in the
arrangements shown may be made without departing from the
true spirit of the inventlon. Therefore, all such
modifications and equivalents are considered to fall in
the scope of the appended claims.
