Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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FIBER REINFORCED PLASTIC LATTICE BODY FOR REINFORCI~G
CONCRETE
The present invention relates to a fiber reinforced
plastic lattice body for reinforcing concrete. More
particularly~ it relates to such a lattice body which is a
one-piece body of a heater element and a fiber rein~orced
synthetic resin.
There has been known a method of melting snow on a
roadway or preventing it from free2ing wherein a heat
generating cable coated with an insulating material is
embedded in the roadway or a pavement at predetermined
intervals, and an electric current is supplied to the cable
so that heat is transmitted to the surface of the roadway or
the pavement. However, the conventional method has many
; disadvantages as follows.
(a) The electric heating cable has to be embedded 5
cm-/10 cm deep in consideration of loads on the road surface
and the strength of the road. Accordingly, the thermal
efficiency is poor and the consumption of power
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is large
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(b) A jointing surface~ ie~trd betwePn the upper
and lower layers in the road with respect to the electric
heating cable. The jointing surace reduces the ~trength
of the roadway and much labor is needed for embedding the
cable.
(c) The wire arrangement of the electric heating
cable sometimes becomes disordexed or a wire is broken
during embedding work. Especially, the weight of a
roller moves aggregate in the road by which the electri~
heating cable may be broken.
(d) When a metallic net for welding is needed for
reinforcing, much labor is required.
It is therefore an object o~ the present invention to
provide a fiber reinforced plastic lattice body for
reinforcing concrete, a method o~ preparing the lattice
body, a method of reinforcing concrete, and a method of ~-
heating concrete in order to eliminate the above-
mentioned disadvantages.
In accordance with the present invention~ there is
provided a concrete reinforcing material of a fiber
reinforced plastic lattice body capable of generating
heat.
In another a~pect of the present invention, there is
provided a method of preparing a fiber reinforced plastic
lattice body cabaple of generating heat, used for a
concrete reinforci~g material which comprises preparing
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an uncured fiber reinforced plastic lat~ice body by ~repeating plural times operations of arranging continuous
reinforcing fibers impregnated with an uncured
thermosetting resin in a lattice from so that the
5 continuous reinforcing fibers orientated in different
directions are put one on another at each intersecting
portions of the lattice body, arranging a linear heater
element in or on at least a wall of the lattice body
during the preparation of the uncured lattice body or
ater the preparation of the uncured lattice body, and
;curing the thermosetting resin in the uncured lattice
body.
In another aspect of the present invention, there is
provided a method of reinforcing concrete by a fiber
:15 reinforced plastic lattice body capable of generting
heat.
In another aspect of the present invention, there is
provided concrete reinforced by embedding a fiber
reinforced plastic lattice body capable of generating
heat.
In another aspect of the present invention, there is
provided a method of heating concrete which comprises
`~heating a fiber reinforced plastic lattice body in
concrete reinforced by embedding said fiber reinforced
;25 plastic lattice body which is capable of generating heat.
In accordance with the present invention, the fiber
reinforced plastic (~RP) lattice body having both
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reinforcing and heating functions is formed by embedd~ng
the heater element in or attaching it on the FRP lattice
body. The FRP referred to in this specification includes
any kind of fiber reinforced plastic material. Glass
fibers are usually used ~or the reinforcing fibers.
~owever, carbon fibers or alamidé fibers and so on may be
used solely or in combination.
As a material for a matrix, thermosettin~ unsaturated
polyestex resin or vinyl ester re~in i~ widely used.
owever, another resin such as phenol resin, epoxy resin
or a thermoplastic resin such as polyamide, polyolefin
and so on may be used. As the FRP lattice body, a
\ lattice disclosed in Japanese Patent Application No. 60-
295751 filed by the same applicant wherein the vertical
members ~nd the lateral members of the lattice body are
crossed in the same plane, is preferably used.
The continuous reinforcing fibers may be supplied by
manual operations or by means of mechanical means such as
filament-windingO The reinforcing ~ibers may be formed
in a chopped mat or cloth which is cut to have the width
corresponding to that o~ the lattice body or any
combination.
Although the lattice body having the intersecting
portions formed on the same plane is preferably used,
another type of the FRP lattice body manufactured by
another method may be used. For instance, an FRP lattice
body formed by stamping operations may be used.
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As the heater element:, a linear element which l~
generates heat by supplying an el ctric current, such as
a nichrome wire which has been generally used, a carbon
fiber, which may be coated with heat-resistance silicone
rubber is preferably used. The heat element may be in a
form of a tape or another shape. The heater element can
be embedded in or attached onto the ~RP lattice body~
whereby they are formed in one piece. The heater element
may be embedded in an uncured lattice body during the
preparatio~ of the FRP lattice body SQ that lt is firmly
secured in the cured resin together with reinforcing
fiber~. The carbon fibers providés both functions of the
heater element and a reinforcing material. The heater
element may be attached onto the lattice body by winding
it around the lattice body or by bonding it on the
surface of the lattice body with a heat resistance
bonding agent. When a heater element made of a corrosive
~ material such as a nichromeT/~ire is used, the heater
; element is previously covered by a heat resistance
material such as silicone rubber or i5 bonded to the
surface of the lattice body with use of a heat resistance
bonding agent.
The arrangement of the heat element in or on the
lattice body is not limited ~o long as functions such as
melting snow, preventing freezing, demisting or floor-
warming can be effectively obtained. Thus, the heating
element may be arranged in or on the entire portion of
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the lattice body; may be arranged only on the virtical
walls or lateral walls of the lattice body; and may be
arranged only at the central portion or the peripheral
portion of the lattice body. Or, a plurality of linear
heater elements may be arrang~d in a side-by-side
relation.
In the drawings:
Figure 1 is a plane view o~ an embodiment of the FRP
lattice body according to the present invention;
Figure 2 is a cro~s-sectional view taken along a line
A-A in Figure 1 showing a state that a heater element is
embedded in the lattice body: `
Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view similar to Figure
2 showing a state that a heater element is attached to a
~urface of the lattice body;
Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view similar to Figure
2 ~howing a state that a heater 2 is embedded at a side
portion of the lattice body;
Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view similar to Figure
2 showing a state that heater elements are embedded at
two corner portions of the lattice body; and
Figure 6 is a diagram showing an embodiment in which
the heating elements in FRP lattice bodies are connected
to a power source.
Preferred embodiments of the present invention will
-: be described with reference to the drawings.
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Figure 1 is a plan~ view of an embodiment of the FRP
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lattice body with a heater element. The FRP lattice body
comprises a gxid consisting of vertical and lateral wall
portions providing rectangular lattice sections formed by the
intersects of the vertical and lateral wall portions. The
shape, dimensions, and the spaces between the wall portions
of the lattice body can be changed according to the intended
use.
Figure 2 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along
a line A-A in Figure 1. In this embodiment, the heater
element 2 is embedded in the lattice body without coating any
insulating material on the heater element because the lattice
bodv itself constitutes an electric insulating material.
Figure 3 shows another embodiment of the present
invention. The heater element is attached to the upper
surface of the wall portionl having a rectangular shape in
cross section, of the lattice body with an bonding agent.
Figure ~ is another embodiment of the present invention.
The heater element 2 i5 embedded with use of a bonding agent
3 in a groove formed in the upper surface of the wall portion
of the lattice body 1.
- Figure 5 is another embodiment of the present invention.
; Two heater elements are respectively embedded with use of a
bonding agent 3 in grooves formed at two corner portions of
the wall portion of lattice body 1.
Figur 6 shows an embodiment of a wiring network
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obtained by connecting the heater elements in the lattice
bodies so as to connect connecting cables 4 each one end
of which is connected to the heat elements 2 and the
other end connected to a power source through wire~ 6.
The lattice body of the present invention can be
preferably used for the following portions or at the
- following locations. `!
1. An uphill road, a curved road and a shadowy road
2. A pavement, a tunnel, an underpass and entrance ;
10and e~it portions of a building or a house
3. A bridge and a walkers bridge
4. A wall in a basement room of concrete
5. A place difficult to remove snow by a machine
Thus, the lattice body of the present invention is
~ 15 useful for melting snow, preventing freezing and
- demisting. Further, the lattice body of the present
invention can be used for an iron reinforcing material
; for a floor of concrete or may be used as a part of a
; floor warming equipment.
20The lattice body of the present invention provides
the ~ollowing advantages.
1. Since the heater element is integrally formed with
the lattice body by way of, for ins~ance, embedding, it
;`. i5 a small possibility to the breaking of the heater
~ 5 element. Accordingly, the lattice body can be installed
`~ near the surface of a road, so that the thermal
~ efficiency of the heater element can be greatly improved.
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2. Since the resinous material used for the present
invention has good resistance to corrosion in comparison
with metal, the thickness of concrete portion may be
reduced. Further, the intersecting portions of the
lattice body are in the same planP of the lattice body
unlike the conventional technique in which iron
reinforcing rods are used, the covering depth of a road
can be reduced to thereby improve thermal efficiency.
3. Since the lattice body can be directly put in
concrete, concrete and asfalt can be easily unified to
thereby reduce labor time.
4. Since the heater element is directly embedded in
the lattice body, there is no risk of a trouble of the
breaking of the wire during paving work.
5~ A metallic net for welding which has been
conventionally required to increase a reinforcing force
is no longer neces~ary. With use oE -the lattice body o
the present invention, the heater element and the
reinforcing material can be simultaneously set, wherPby
labor work can be reduced.
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