Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
CA 02421475 2003-03-11
MANUFACTURED HOUSE LIFTING AND LOWERING DEVICE
FIELD OF INVENTION
The present invention relates to a device for raising and lowering a
structure, and particularly, a
device for raising and lowering a building or manufactured house, and a
process for raising and
lowering a building or manufactured house.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
In the manufacturing of buildings, and particularly houses, it is well-known
to manufacture a
partially completed building or house within a factory ("manufactured house"),
for subsequent
relocation of the manufactured house by means of a truck trailer or
transporter, to a subdivision
or other location in which the manufactured house will be positioned and
installed on top of a
foundation.
United States Patent Number 5,402,618 (Biffis et al.) discloses one such
manufacturing process,
and the use of a mobile crane at the foundation site to remove the house from
the truck trailer or
transporter onto the foundation. The use of a mobile crane in the manner
described in Biffis et al.
requires the mobile crane to be available for each move, and requires an
elaborate lifting frame,
cables, straps and attachment elements to secure the house during the lifting,
placement and
lowering processes. Furthermore, the process described in Biffis et al.
requires the use of a steel
base member upon which the house is assembled to support the house so that the
house will not
flex or bend during movement.
United States Patent Number 4,187,659 (Blachura) also discloses the use of a
mobile crane at the
foundation site to remove a house from the truck trailer or transporter onto
the foundation and the
use of lifting rods which extend through the walls of the house to engage
beams located beneath
the house. The rods extend through the roof of the house, being attached to a
rigid rectangular
frame harness located above the house, from which cables or chains extend for
lifting by the
mobile crane.
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These processes require the use of a variety of elaborate apparatuses for
slinging and supporting
the manufactured house during the move, and the use of a mobile crane on site
during the move.
The use of a mobile crane has several disadvantages, namely, the expense of
acquiring, operating
and maintaining such equipment in the field, the need for expansive areas in
which to place and
operate such equipment during the installation process, and the requirement
that the equipment
be situated on stable ground sufficient to support the crane and its related
equipment and
outriggers, and the manufactured house.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The object of the present invention is to provide a device for raising and
lowering a
manufactured house or other building in a precise manner, so that it can be
precisely and easily
positioned, without damage.
Accordingly, the present invention relates to a device for lifting and
lowering a building,
including, at least three hydraulic jacks, means for releasably engaging each
of the at least three
hydraulic jacks to the building, at least three positive displacement
hydraulic pumps, each of
which at least three positive displacement hydraulic pumps being individually
hydraulically
linked to only one of the at least three hydraulic jacks, a means for
actuating each of the at least
three positive displacement hydraulic pumps so that each of the at least three
hydraulic jacks, and
the building, may be raised or lowered at the same rate, by the same amount.
The advantage of the present invention is that it provides a means for
lowering a manufactured
house or other building onto a foundation without requiring a mobile crane or
similar device.
Additionally it is compact, and permits in appropriate circumstances, the use
of the basement
floor of the manufactured house or building as the support for the
manufactured house or
building while it is being lowered onto the foundation.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
A preferred embodiment of the present invention is described herein, with
reference to the
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accompanying drawings, in which:
Figure 1 is a view of eight positive displacement pumps, a positive
displacement pump actuator,
and eight hydraulic jacks in one embodiment of the device when in the unloaded
position;
Figure 2 illustrates eight hydraulic jacks positioned on the basement floor
within the house
foundation for a manufactured house;
Figure 3 is a manufactured house positioned upon earner beams, and supported
by skate beams,
positioned above a house foundation;
Figure 4 is a view of three skate beams straddling the foundation which
together with the eight
hydraulic jacks of one embodiment of the present invention being in engagement
with four
carrier beams supporting the manufactured house;
Figure 5 is a view of the eight hydraulic jacks of one embodiment of the
present invention in a
fully raised position supporting the four carrier beams and the manufactured
house;
Figure 6 is a view of the manufactured house positioned upon the foundation;
Figure 7 is a schematic diagram which depicts in schematic form one embodiment
of the device
of the present invention;
Figure 8 is an alternative embodiment of eight positive displacement pumps and
a positive
displacement pump actuator.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Referring to the drawings more particularly by reference numerals, which
illustrate a preferred
embodiment of the invention, Figure 1 illustrates eight positive displacement
pumps generally
shown as 10 in Figure 1, a positive displacement pump actuator generally shown
as 20 in Figure
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1, and eight hydraulic jacks 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47 and 48, all in the
lower unloaded position.
Referring to Figure 2, the eight hydraulic jacks 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47
and 48 are shown
positioned on the basement floor 60 of a foundation 100 for the manufactured
house prior to the
installation of the manufactured house 50 on the foundation 100. Each pair of
hydraulic jacks is
positioned to support a carrier beam, it being understood that these hydraulic
jacks 41, 42, 43, 44,
45, 46, 47 and 48 may be pre-positioned prior to the arrival of the
manufactured house 50, or
may be positioned once the manufactured house 50 is positioned above the
foundation 100, as
described more fully herein. The base of each of the eight hydraulic jacks 41,
42, 43, 44, 45, 46,
47 and 48 is positioned stably and securely on the basement floor 60. The base
of each of the
hydraulic jacks 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47 and 48 may rest directly upon the
ground or basement
floor 60, or if necessary, upon hydraulic jack load bearing plates (not shown)
to distribute the
weight to be loaded thereon.
Skate beam supports 70 are positioned on the basement floor 60, and on the
ground outside of the
foundation 100, to receive the load of the skates beams 72, 73 and 74, carrier
beams 32, 34, 36
and 38 and the manufactured house 50 as described more fully herein. Skates or
rollers (not
shown) may be used between the carrier beams 32, 34, 36 and 38 and skate beams
72, 73 and 74
to permit the movement of the manufactured house 50 relative to the foundation
100 prior to
lowering the manufactured house onto the foundation 100.
Referring to Figure 3, in the preferred embodiment, two or three more
generally horizontally
oriented skate beams 72, 73 and 74 are positioned parallel to one another
across the foundation
100, the skate beams 72, 73 and 74 being supported by skate beam supports 70
suitably
positioned on the basement floor and under both ends of the skate beams 72, 73
and 74 which
extend beyond and outside of the foundation 100 for additional support.
As illustrated in Figure 3, in the preferred embodiment, carrier beams 32, 34,
36 and 38 are
located beneath the manufactured house 50, to support and carry the load of
the manufactured
house S0. In the preferred embodiment, the four carrier beams 32, 34, 36 and
38 are oriented
generally parallel to one another, and in the preferred embodiment, the
carrier beams 32, 34, 36
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and 38 are oriented generally perpendicular to the orientation of the joists
of the manufactured
house 50. In one embodiment, the foundation 100 is notched 105 to receive the
carrier beams 32,
34, 36 and 38 when the manufactured house 50 is lowered onto the foundation
100 as more fully
described herein.
In the preferred embodiment two hydraulic jacks are used for each earner beam,
it being
understood that more than two hydraulic jacks may be used if necessary to
support the weight of
the carrier beam and the weight of the manufactured house 50 supported
thereby.
In the preferred embodiment, four carrier beams 32, 34, 36 and 38 and eight
hydraulic jacks 41,
42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47 and 48 are used, it being understood that in some
circumstances, as few as
three hydraulic jacks may be used (ie. the hydraulic jacks being arranged in a
triangular pattern,
two hydraulic jacks supporting one carrier beam and one hydraulic jacks
supporting a second
carrier beam), or a large number of hydraulic jacks and carrier beams may be
utilized, depending,
amongst other things, on the total weight of the manufactured house 50, the
weight distribution
and center of gravity of the manufactured house 50, the loading capacity of
the hydraulic jacks,
the loading capacity of the earner beams, and the loading capacity of the
basement floor 60.
In the preferred embodiment, the base of each of the hydraulic jacks 41, 42,
43, 44, 45, 46, 47
and 48 is securely positioned on the basement floor 60, (with or without
hydraulic jack load
bearing plates as necessary). In one embodiment, for added structural
integrity, two or more of
the hydraulic jacks may be connected together by structural links to minimize
or eliminate any
unstable horizontal or pivoting movement of the hydraulic jacks when loaded
with a
manufactured house S0.
Figure 3 illustrates the manufactured house S0, being supported by earner
beams 32, 34, 36 and
38 and skate beams 72, 73 and 74 and positioned immediately above and in
alignment with the
top of the foundation 100, ready to be lowered onto the top of the foundation
100. At this time,
the carrier beams 32, 34, 36 and 38 are positioned, directly beneath the
manufactured house 50,
and are resting on and supported by generally horizontally oriented skate
beams 72, 73 and 74.
The carrier beams 32, 34, 36 and 38 are in alignment with the notches 105 in
the foundation 100,
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and spanning the joists of the manufactured house 50, receive the weight of
and provide support
to the manufactured house 50.
Presetting the Actuator to the Top Position for Lifting
Refernng to Figure 7, in the preferred embodiment, prior to lifting the
manufactured house 50
and carrier beams 32, 34, 36 and 38 off of the skate beams 72, 73 and 74, the
actuator piston 23
is set to an upper position generally shown as 22 in Figure 7 by filling each
of the positive
displacement pumps 10 with hydraulic fluid pumped by the main hydraulic pump
80 from the
hydraulic fluid reservoir 90, the hydraulic fluid being pressurized
sufficiently to fill each of the
positive displacement pumps 10 and to move actuator piston 23 to an upper
position 22. More
specifically, with each of the valves in manifold 110, manifold 120, manifold
130, and the valve
140 closed, valve 140 is opened and valve I 11 is opened. Each of the valves
of manifold 120 are
then opened briefly to initially fill each of the positive displacement pumps
10 at a minimum of
pressure, setting the actuator piston 23 to the upper position 22, the
hydraulic fluid in the actuator
returning to the reservoir 90 through the opened valve 140. Valve 140 and the
valves of
manifold 120 are then closed, maintaining the actuator in the upper position
22.
Loading the Carrier Beams
With the actuator piston in the upper position 22, in the preferred
embodiment, the first hydraulic
jack piston 41 (positioned under the first carrier beam 32) is thereafter
partially extended,
independently of each of the other hydraulic jacks, receiving pressurized
hydraulic fluid from the
main hydraulic pump 80 (as described in more detail herein) until contact is
made between the
top of the first hydraulic jack 41 and the underside of the first carrier beam
32. In the preferred
embodiment, the first hydraulic jack 41 is thereafter extended incrementally,
and independently
of the other hydraulic jacks until the first hydraulic jack 41 takes a portion
of the load of the
manufactured house 50 supported by that carrier beam 32 at that loading point.
The portion of the
load taken by the first hydraulic jack 41 is within a specified range, the
lower end of the range
being the negligible load of mere contact between the hydraulic jack 41 and
carrier beam 32, and
the upper range being determined, on a building by building basis, by the
structural and loading
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limits of the manufactured house 50 and carrier beam, and the amount of flex
or distortion
permissible without resulting in structural or other damage to the
manufactured house 50, it
being understood that the flexing and distortion must not extend beyond the
structural limits of
the manufactured house 50 or be such that it would result in any structural or
other damage to the
manufactured house 50.
Thereafter, the second hydraulic jack 42, independently of the other hydraulic
jacks, is similarly
brought into contact with, and in the case of the preferred embodiment, also
loaded with a
predetermined portion of the load at that loading point in the same manner as
the first hydraulic
jack 41. This process continues until each of the hydraulic jacks are
individually either brought
into contact with their respective carrier beams, or in the case of the
preferred embodiment, also
loaded to carry a predetermined load of the manufactured house at that loading
point, in the same
manner as the first hydraulic jack 41.
It is understood that throughout this initial phase, the raising of each of
the hydraulic jacks occurs
independently of one another, by way of, in one embodiment, a positive
displacement pump
hydraulically linked independently to each hydraulic jack, or in another
embodiment the
hydraulic jacks being hydraulically isolated from one another such that a
single positive
displacement pump raises or lowers any individual hydraulic jack without at
the same time
raising or lowering any of the other hydraulic jacks. When the initial phase
is complete, each of
the hydraulic jacks is in contact with, and in the preferred embodiment,
carrying a pre-
determined load of the manufactured house, as illustrated in Figure 4.
More specifically, in the preferred embodiment, referring to Figure 7, with
the actuator piston 23
in the upper position 22, the pressurized hydraulic fluid from the main
hydraulic pump 80
reaches a first manifold 110, having valves 111 and 112 therein. When valve
111 is opened,
pressurized hydraulic fluid flows from the hydraulic pump 80 to reach a second
manifold 120
containing valve 121, valve 122 and valve 123 which latter valve represents in
the preferred
embodiment both the third and also the fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh and
eighth valves in manifold
120, each of these valves being of like nature and function as valves 121 and
122.
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When valve 111 of manifold 110 is opened and valve 121 of the second manifold
120 is also
opened, this permits pressurized hydraulic fluid from the hydraulic pump 80 to
flow to valve 131
of the third manifold 130 and positive displacement pump 11. By controlling
valve 121 or 131,
the hydraulic jack 41 may be raised to come into contact with carrier beam 32,
and in the
preferred embodiment, extended incrementally until it takes up a predetermined
load of the
manufactured house 50 supported by that carrier beam at that loading point.
Valves 121 and 131
are then closed.
Similarly, when valve 111 of manifold 110 is opened and valve 122 of the
second manifold 120
is also opened, this permits pressurized hydraulic fluid from the hydraulic
pump 80 to flow to
valve 132 of the third manifold 130 and positive displacement pump 12. By
controlling valve
122 or 132, the hydraulic jack 42 may be raised to come into contact with
carrier beam 32, and in
the preferred embodiment, extended incrementally until it takes up a
predetermined load of the
manufactured house 50 supported by that carrier beam at that loading point.
Valves 122 and 132
are then closed
Similarly when valve 111 of manifold 110 is opened and valve 123 of the second
manifold 120 is
also opened, this permits pressurized hydraulic fluid from the hydraulic pump
80 to flow to valve
133 of the third manifold 130 and positive displacement pump 13. By
controlling valve 123 or
133, the hydraulic jack 43 may be raised to come into contact with carrier
beam 34 (illustrated in
Figure 4), and in the preferred embodiment, extended incrementally until it
takes up a
predetermined load of the manufactured house 50 supported by that carrier beam
at that loading
point. Valves 123 and 133 are then closed.
It is understood that valve 133 represents both the third, and the fourth,
fifth, sixth, seventh and
eighth valves in manifold 130, each of the additional valves being of like
nature and function as
valves 131 and 132. Likewise it is understood that positive displacement pump
13 represents
both the third, and the fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth positive
displacement pumps, each
of the additional positive displacement pumps being of like nature and
function as positive
displacement pumps 11 and 12. It is also understood that hydraulic jack 43
represents both the
third, and the fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth hydraulic jacks, each
of the additional
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hydraulic jacks being of like nature and function as hydraulic jacks 41 and
42, hydraulic jacks 43
and 44 supporting carrier beam 34, hydraulic jacks 45 and 46 supporting earner
beam 36 and
hydraulic jacks 47 and 48 supporting carrier beam 38.
S In the manner described above, the hydraulic line between each of the
hydraulic jacks and its
corresponding positive displacement pump has been filled with pressurized
hydraulic fluid (each
of corresponding the positive displacement pump chambers also being filled
with pressurized
hydraulic fluid), which pressure, in the case of the preferred embodiment, may
be unique to each
of these connecting hydraulic lines and positive displacement pumps, the
pressure in each line
(and its corresponding positive displacement pump) being determined in part by
the hydraulic
pressure required to raise the corresponding hydraulic jack to the point where
it supports the
predetermined load of the manufactured house 50 at its loading point.
Lifting the House
Once each of the hydraulic jacks has been placed in contact with the earner
beams, or in the case
of the preferred embodiment, taken a predetermined portion of the load of the
manufactured
house at the loading point for that hydraulic jack, control over the raising
and lowering of all of
the hydraulic jacks, and the manufactured house, passes to the set of positive
displacement
pumps 10 linked by a master link 27 to a positive displacement pump actuator
20. In the
preferred embodiment, all of the positive displacement pumps 10 are identical
to one another in
output volume, controls, and method of operation, each of the hydraulic jacks
being individually
hydraulically connected to its own positive displacement pump so that each of
the hydraulic jacks
extends or retracts at the same rate as the others.
It is understood that if each of the hydraulic jacks used to lift the
manufactured house have
identical piston diameters to one another, then if piston type positive
displacement pumps are
used, the piston diameters of each of the positive displacement pumps are also
identical.
Similarly, if one or more of the hydraulic jacks used to lift the manufactured
house has a
relatively larger or smaller piston diameter than the others, then a
correspondingly larger or
smaller piston diameter is to be utilized in the corresponding positive
displacement pump so that
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each of the pistons of the positive displacement pumps transfers that amount
of hydraulic fluid
to each of the hydraulic jacks as is required to precisely raise or lower all
of the hydraulic jacks
by an identical amount, and at an identical rate.
The positive displacement pump actuator controls 20 the output of all of the
positive
displacement pumps 10 in the set of positive displacement pumps so that when
actuating the
positive displacement pumps, each of the positive displacement pumps pumps
precisely that
quantity of hydraulic fluid to its corresponding hydraulic jack as is required
to precisely extend or
retract that hydraulic jack the same distance and at the same rate as each of
the other hydraulic
j acks.
To raise the manufactured house 50, the actuator 20 drives each of the
positive displacement
pumps 10 at the same rate forcing that volume of hydraulic fluid from each
positive displacement
pump into its corresponding hydraulic jack to raise each of the hydraulic
jacks the same distance
and at the same rate, it being understood that in doing so, the pressures in
each of the hydraulic
jacks, and their corresponding connecting hydraulic lines may be unique as
described above.
When the manufactured house 50 has been raised the desired amount, the
actuator 20 is
maintained in a stationary position until such time as further vertical
movement of the
manufactured house 50 is required. Figure 5 illustrates the manufactured house
in a raised
position, the carrier beams 32, 34, 36 and 38 are raised above the skate beams
72, 73 and 74,
allowing for the removal of~the skate beams 72, 73 and 74 prior to the
lowering of the
manufactured house 50 onto the foundation 100.
These steps are achieved in the preferred embodiment through the following
series of steps,
having reference to Figure 7. With each of the valves in manifolds I 10, 120
and 130 and the
valve 140 closed, the valves in manifold 130 are fully opened. Thereafter, in
a controlled manner,
valve 112 is opened which begins to fill the actuator cylinder 24 with
pressurized hydraulic fluid
from the reservoir 90 by way of the main hydraulic pump 80, driving the
actuator piston 23
towards the lower position, generally shown as 25 in Figure 7, extending the
actuator rod 26 and
by means of the actuator cross-member 27, driving hydraulic fluid from each of
the positive
displacement pumps 10 into their corresponding hydraulic jacks to lift the
manufactured house.
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When the manufactured house 50 has been raised the desired amount, valve 112
is closed,
maintaining the actuator 20, each of the positive displacement pumps 10, and
each of the
hydraulic jacks, in a fixed position.
With the manufactured house 50 raised, the skate beams 72, 73 and 74 are then
removed,
permitting the manufactured house 50 to be lowered directly onto the
foundation 100.
Lowering the House
To lower the manufactured house 50 onto the foundation 100, with the valves in
manifold 130
opened and the valves in manifold 120 closed, the actuator piston 23 is
permitted to return
toward the upper position 22 by opening valve 140 in a controlled manner,
thereby permitting the
pressurized hydraulic fluid in the actuator cylinder 24 to be expelled from
the actuator cylinder
24 into the reservoir 90 in a controlled manner, thereby allowing each of the
positive
displacement pumps 10 to receive pressurized hydraulic fluid from the
hydraulic jacks 41, 42, 43,
44, 45, 4G, 47, and 48 as the actuator piston 23 is moved toward the upper
position 22 of the
actuator 20. The controlled movement of the pressurized hydraulic liquid from
each of the
hydraulic jacks allows for the controlled and simultaneous lowering of each of
the hydraulic
jacks at the same rate, permitting the manufactured house 50 to be lowered
onto the foundation
100 in a controlled manner. In one embodiment, the carrier beams are lowered
into the
corresponding notches 105 in the foundation 100, and when the weight of the
manufactured
house has fully transferred to the foundation 100 and off of the carrier
beams, the carrier beams
are removed and the notches filled in a suitable manner.
It is to be noted that positive displacement pumps could take many forms
including piston
pumps, vane pumps, gear pumps, progressive cavity pumps, and any other pump
which produces
a precisely controllable output and input volume of hydraulic fluid. In the
preferred embodiment,
all of the positive displacement pumps are identical to one another in both
output and input
volume, controls, and method of operation.
It is also to be noted that the actuator 20 could take many different forms.
In the embodiment
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shown in Figure 7, the actuator 20 includes an actuator hydraulic cylinder 24,
an actuator piston
23 connected to an actuator rod 26 and an actuator cross-member 27 to form an
inverted "T",
the actuator cross-member 27 being securely attached to the actuator rod 26 in
such a manner as
to actuate each of the positive displacement pumps 10 at the same rate, by
maintaining a constant
angle between the actuator rod 26 and the actuator cross-member 27. It is to
be understood that
many forms of actuators are capable of performing these functions, including
motors, screw
jacks, chains, or rack and pinions, coupled to other linkages which could
readily be provided, to
actuate the positive displacement pumps in the manner described herein. In one
embodiment
shown in Figure 8, the positive displacement pumps 10 are arranged in a
generally circular
arrangement, centered around the axis of the actuator cylinder 24 and actuator
rod 26, to reduce
the tendency to twist or bend the actuator cross-member 27, actuator rod 26,
and/or actuator
piston 23.
It is also to be understood that this invention may be used to lift and lower
buildings and houses
onto other surfaces, such as, for example, a trailer or transporter, or
factory floor with appropriate
modifications to the process to accommodate those circumstances.
Numerous modifications, variations and adaptations may be made to the
particular embodiments
of the invention described herein without departing from the scope of the
invention which is
defined in the claims.
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