Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
CA 02602071 2007-09-21
WO 2006/100556 PCT/IB2006/000596
- 1 -
TITLE
METHOD AND DEVICE FOR BUILDING AUTOMATICALLY CONGLOMERATE
STRUCTURES
Field of the invention
The present invention relates to building and, in
particular to the automatic construction of buildings or
other heavy constructions by a method and a device suitable
for reducing the building time and for assisting its
relative operations. The present invention is used also to
build particularly articulated and complex structures.
Background of the invention
Many methods are known for making buildings, with
different construction techniques and materials.
A well known technique uses concrete that is cast in
a semi-fluid form in a formwork. With this technique
volumes of concrete are obtained having the shape of the
formwork used.
This technique has the drawback a complex work is
required to obtain complex forms having convexities and
concavities, mainly owing to the difficulty to provide
formworks with shape complex and owing to the low
resistance to pulling stresses of the concrete, which
requires the use of steel reinforcements that must be
folded to follow the shape of the formwork.
Another drawback is the cost of the manual work to
make the formwork before casting the concrete and for
removing the formworks after hardening.
A further drawback is the cost of the formwork
material.
Another drawback of the method for construction with
concrete is the waiting time necessary for hardening.
It is felt, then, the need of a method for making
buildings, which is quick and not expensive, suitable for
CA 02602071 2007-09-21
WO 2006/100556 PCT/IB2006/000596
- 2 -
being carried out with an automatic method
Summary of the invention
A feature of the present invention is therefore that
to provide a method for making automatically buildings and
other works in the building industry.
Another feature of the invention is to provide a
method for making buildings obtained with volumes with
even complex shape, comprising also concave or convex
surfaces, and undercut portions of whichever form and
size.
A further object is to provide a method suitable for
providing structures resistant not only to compression,
but even to pulling stresses.
Another feature of the invention is to provide an
apparatus suitable for carrying out said method.
These and other objects are achieved by a method for
building automatically conglomerate structures,
characterized in that it comprises the steps of:
- CAD modelling a structure of building, in
particular with a CAD function of surface modelling
or of volume modelling, obtaining a computer file
structure model;
- sectioning said computer file structure model with
horizontal parallel planes according to a
predetermined pitch, in order to generate a
plurality of cross section planes of the structure
comprising solid and empty areas, corresponding to
the solid and empty parts of the structure, said
planes being sorted from below towards the above;
- prearranging an apparatus suitable for depositing
in alternation a layer of granular material and a
liquid binder within containing walls that define a
closed perimeter;
- moving said apparatus within said perimeter in
CA 02602071 2007-09-21
WO 2006/100556 PCT/IB2006/000596
- 3 -
order to deposit a first uniform horizontal layer
of granular inert material of thickness
corresponding to said predetermined pitch;
- spraying a first layer of binder by said apparatus
in order to reproduce a first plane of said cross
section planes, forming a layer of inert material
and of binder only at said solid areas, said
apparatus having a operating head suitable for
moving in a horizontal plane;
- raising vertically said apparatus according to said
pitch;
- repeating the deposition step of granular inert
material and repeating on it the binder spraying
step as many times as are the horizontal cross
sections of the structure, each time for a
different and vertically next cross section plane
up to complete the last layer;
- removing the inert material that has not been bond
by the binder and that has accumulated within said
perimeter, freeing a solid structure that repeats
accurately said structure model.
In particular, said method provides a step of
enveloping said structure or portion of it with a.
plurality of single volumes that envelope said structure.
In particular, said single volumes are selected from
the group comprised of: parallelepipeds, cylinders,
prisms, spheres or parts or combinations of them.
Advantageously, said single volumes have edges or
vertical generatrix parallel to vertical sides of said
structure and the horizontal edges parallel to the
horizontal planes of said structure.
In a preferred exemplary embodiment said parallel
and horizontal cross section planes are equidistant with
respect to each other.
CA 02602071 2007-09-21
WO 2006/100556 PCT/1B2006/000596
- 4 -
Advantageously, a CAM system is provided having
graphical environment suitable for displaying said model
structure file.
Always advantageously, said apparatus comprises an
operating head piloted on said horizontal planes with
independent motion or interpolated motion according to
Cartesian or polar coordinates.
According to another aspect of the present
invention, an apparatus for building automatically
conglomerate structures is characterized in that it
comprises:
- a closed perimeter defined by containing walls;
- a horizontal frame suitable for supporting a bridge
crane capable of causing a operating head to move
in a horizontal plane defined by said horizontal
frame within said perimeter;
- means for actuating said operating head on said
horizontal plane parallel to said bridge crane;
- a framework having at least one upright capable of
supporting said horizontal frame;
- means for moving said horizontal frame in a
vertical direction;
- a control unit suitable for controlling the
succession of operations up to completion of said
structure;
- wherein said containing walls are capable to
contain said inert material in a working area
larger than said conglomerate structure.
In a preferred exemplary embodiment said
containing walls are vertical and define a
parallelepiped or cylindrical volume on said working
area.
Advantageously, a covering is provided for
roofing said containing walls.
CA 02602071 2007-09-21
WO 2006/100556 PCT/IB2006/000596
- 5 -
In particular, said covering is capable of
stopping hermetically said volume so that a vacuum can
be created inside.
Advantageously, said operating head comprises:
- at least one binder spraying nozzle operated by a
controlled electro valve;
- a premixing head;
- a feeding pump;
- a reservoir;
- a washing system.
In a preferred exemplary embodiment, said operating
head comprises a volumetric doser for supplying said
operating head with a known amount of inert material for
each stroke.
Advantageously, said operating head comprises a
blade that is adapted to slide on the deposited inert
material to uniform it in order to achieve a predetermined
thickness, on the whole working area.
In particular, said resin is selected from the group
comprised of:
- epoxy resins;
- cross linking polyurethane.
Advantageously, said resin has a viscosity set
between 3 and 10 poises, and preferably between 6 and 8
poises, and is adapted to be fluid enough to penetrate
between the granules of the granular material for a height
corresponding to said pitch, thus reaching the layer of
granular material bonded in the previous step.
In particular, said granular material has a
granulometry set between 0,1 and 2 mm, and preferably
between 0,5 and 1,5 mm. This way the granular material has
a value of maximum effective porosity adapted to cause
said binder to penetrate between the deposited granules up
to reaching the layer already sprayed in the previous
CA 02602071 2007-09-21
WO 2006/100556 PCT/IB2006/000596
- 6 -
cycle.
Brief description of the drawings
The invention will be made clearer with the
description of some of its exemplary embodiments,
exemplifying but not limitative, with reference to the
attached drawings wherein:
- Figure 1 shows an apparatus for building
automatically conglomerate structures according to
the present invention, comprising a horizontal
frame sliding vertically on which a bridge crane is
slidingly engaged that supports a operating head;
- Figure 2 shows an end portion of said bridge crane;
- Figures 3 and 4 show respectively a perspective
view and a front view of an apparatus according to
the invention and figure 5 shows a view of the
operating head, relative to a first operative
deposition st-ep of an amount of granular material;
- Figures 6, 7 and 8 show the apparatus according to
the invention, during a step of spreading the
granular material along the exposed surface of the
previously deposited layer;
- Figures 9, 10 and 11 show the apparatus at the end
of a stroke of spreading the binder;
- Figures 12, 13 and 14 show the apparatus during a
back stroke when the operating head sprays a binder
on the layer of granular material just deposited
only on the solid areas of a cross section;
- Figures 15, 16 and 17 show the final part of the
spraying stroke;
- Figures 18, 19 and 20 show the repetition of the
first step with a further deposition of an amount
of granular material.
- Figures 21 and 22 show respectively a perspective
view and an elevational view of the final steps of
CA 02602071 2007-09-21
WO 2006/100556 PCT/1B2006/000596
- 7 -
completion of the building.
- Figure 23 shows a cross sectional view of a portion
of a structure comprising two layers of granular
material 61 and 62 deposited in two successive
steps.
Description of the preferred exemplary embodiment
In the following description an example will be shown
of an embodiment of an apparatus that carries out the
method according to the invention.
In particular, in figure 1 an apparatus is described
according to the invention suitable for making
automatically conglomerate structures of buildings. it
comprises a framework having four uprights 3, 4, 5, 6
capable of supporting a horizontal frame 1 movable
vertically along such uprights.
Horizontal frame 1, with closed shape has at least
two parallel sides 2 for slidingly engaging with two ends
of a bridge crane 15 which holds an operating head 16.
Altogether, operating head 16 moves along arrow 19
perpendicular to the sliding direction 18 of bridge crane
15 and frame 1 can move vertically along arrows 11, 12,
13, 14.
In figure 2 an end portion of bridge crane 15 is
shown more in detail. The bridge crane structure 15
comprises a beam 21, having at each end a couple of wheels
23 that engage with the inner part of the beams 2 of
figure 1. A guide 20 is provided integral and parallel to
beam 21 that slidingly holds a slide 24 of operating head
16, which is capable of spraying a liquid binder on a just
deposited layer of granular material. Beam 21 supports a
hopper 17 with elongated shape, which extends along the
length of beam 21 and is adapted to deposit a
predetermined amount of granular material at one end of
the depositing plane. Along beam 21 a blade is arranged
CA 02602071 2007-09-21
WO 2006/100556 PCT/IB2006/000596
for spreading the granular material just deposited by the
above described hopper 17.
Figures 3 and 4 show respectively a perspective view
and a front view of an apparatus according to the
invention and figure 5 is a view of operating head 16,
relative to a first operative deposition step of an amount
of granular material, in which frame 1 is at the position
of zero (ground level), bridge crane 15 is in its first
stop position and operating head 16 is in its first stop
position.
The apparatus comprises four containing walls 31
that define a volume that is going to be filled with
granular material following the method according to the
invention.
Figures 6, 7 and 8 show the apparatus according to
the invention, during a step of spreading the granular
material along the exposed surface of the previously
deposited layer. In this step bridge crane 15 moves
towards its second limit stop, distributing and leveling
the granular material deposited in the previous step, by
blade 22.
Figures 9, 10 and 11 show the apparatus at the end
of the previous step. Frame 1 is still at ground level,
bridge crane 15 has achieved its second limit stop and is
still, while operating head 16 is still at its first limit
stop.
Figures 12, 13 and 14 show the apparatus in a step
of back stroke when operating head 16 sprays the binder on
the layer of granular material only at the solid areas of
the calculated cross section. In this step frame 1 is
still at the zero level, bridge crane 15 moves back and
operating head 16 sprays the binder and moves along its
sliding axis.
Figures 15, 16 and 17 show the apparatus at the end
CA 02602071 2007-09-21
WO 2006/100556 PCT/IB2006/000596
- 9 -
of the spraying step, when frame 1 is still at ground
level, bridge crane 15 and operating head 16 have moved
back to their first limit stop. In this position, the
doser 40 of bridge crane 15 is filled with an amount of
granular material to be deposited in the next step.
Figures 18, 19 and 20 show the repetition of the
previous steps, in particular of the first step, on a
second distribution level reached by raising frame 1 for a
height equal to the pitch. In this step the amount of
granular material stored in the previous step is deposited
by doser 40. When frame 1 is stepped up, bridge crane 15
and operating head 16 are at the respective first limit
stops.
In figure 21 the apparatus is carrying out its last
step before completion of the conglomerate structure.
In figure 22 the structure of building 50 has been
completed. The next steps are the evacuation of the
granular material not cemented by the binder, thus leaving
the cemented part and then the structure, and removing the
containing walls and then the apparatus.
Figure 23 shows a cross sectional view of a portion
of structure comprising two layers of granular material 61
and 62 deposited in two successive steps. The resin is
selected from the group comprised of epoxy resin and cross
linking polyurethane; it has a viscosity set between 3 and
10 poises, and preferably between 6 and 8 poises, and is
adapted to be fluid enough to penetrate between the
granules of the granular material for a hei.ght
corresponding to pitch 68, thus achieving the layer 64 of
granular material previously formed.
In particular, said granular material has a
granulometry set between 0,1 and 2 mm, and preferably
between 0,5 and 1,5 mm; this way the granular material has
a maximum effective porosity adapted to cause said binder
CA 02602071 2007-09-21
WO 2006/100556 PCT/IB2006/000596
- 10 -
to penetrate between the deposited granules up to reaching
the layer already sprayed in the previous cycle.
The foregoing description of specific embodiments
will so fully reveal the invention according to the
conceptual point of view, so that others, by applying
current knowledge, will be able to modify and/or adapt for
various applications such embodiments without further
research and without departing from the invention, and it
is therefore to be understood that such adaptations a=nd
modifications will have to be considered as equivalent to
the specific embodiments. The means and the materials to
realise the different functions described herein could
have a different nature without, for this reason,
departing from the field of the invention. It is to be
understood that the phraseology or terminology employed
herein is for the purpose of description and not of
limitation.
